Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor Increases the Efficacy of Conventional Amphotericin in the Treatment of Presumed Deep-Seated Fungal Infection in Neutropenic Patients following Intensive Chemotherapy or Bone Marrow Transplantation for Haematological Malignancies

A prospective, comparative study of empiric amphotericin B with, or without, granulocyte colony stimulating factor was carried out to assess whether the addition of granulocyte colony stimulating factor to empiric amphotericin B improves the clinical response in neutropenic patients with suspected or proven fungal infection. Fifty nine neutropenic adults with haematological malignancy and antibiotic-refractory fever or clinical evidence of deep-seated fungal infection were studied. Patients received intravenous colloidal amphotericin B (1 milligram per kilogram body weight) with or without subcutaneous granulocyte colony stimulating factor (three to five micrograms per kilogram body weight). Thirty patients received amphotericin alone and 29 amphotericin plus granulocyte colony stimulating factor. Nearly twice as many patients responded to amphotericin B with concomitant administration of granulocyte colony stimulating factor (62%) as responded to amphotericin alone (33%; difference in proportions 0.29,95%CI 0.03–0.54). Clinical response in patients receiving granulocyte colony stimulating factor coincided with neutrophil recovery in most cases. Addition of granulocyte colony stimulating factor to empiric amphotericin B significantly reduced the number of patients requiring salvage therapy with lipid-associated or liposomal formulations of amphotericin B addition of granulocyte colony stimulating factor to empiric intravenous amphotericin B improves the response rate and thereby reduces the number of patients requiring salvage therapy with liposomal or lipid-associated preparations of amphotericin B.