The authors surveyed the present situation for imported (introduced) mycoses from papers published in Japan by the end of December, 2001. The results revealed 31 cases of coccidioidomycosis, 33 of histoplasmosis, 17 of paracoccidioidomycosis and one of penicilliosis marneffei. In coccidioidomycosis the ages ranged from 12 to 55, for 27 males and 4 females of which 2 were fatal. For histoplasmosis, the ages ranged from 17 to 74 of which 24 cases were male and 8 female. All of the patients with paracoccidioidomycosis were infected in Latin American countries. They consisted of 15 males and 2 females, and the ages ranged from 24 to 68. A single case of penicilliosis marneffei (38 years old, male) was reported very recently. The case was complicated by AIDS and became critical. Blastomycosis has not yet been reported. This survey indicates that the number of the imported mycoses in Japan is increasing. It is necessary for the persons concerned to counter measures to cope with this situation.
Blastomycosis ; Coccidioidomycosis ; Female ; Histoplasmosis ; Humans ; Japan* ; Male ; Mycoses* ; Paracoccidioidomycosis

The authors surveyed the present situation for imported (introduced) mycoses from papers published in Japan by the end of December, 2001. The results revealed 31 cases of coccidioidomycosis, 33 of histoplasmosis, 17 of paracoccidioidomycosis and one of penicilliosis marneffei. In coccidioidomycosis the ages ranged from 12 to 55, for 27 males and 4 females of which 2 were fatal. For histoplasmosis, the ages ranged from 17 to 74 of which 24 cases were male and 8 female. All of the patients with paracoccidioidomycosis were infected in Latin American countries. They consisted of 15 males and 2 females, and the ages ranged from 24 to 68. A single case of penicilliosis marneffei (38 years old, male) was reported very recently. The case was complicated by AIDS and became critical. Blastomycosis has not yet been reported. This survey indicates that the number of the imported mycoses in Japan is increasing. It is necessary for the persons concerned to counter measures to cope with this situation.
Blastomycosis ; Coccidioidomycosis ; Female ; Histoplasmosis ; Humans ; Japan* ; Male ; Mycoses* ; Paracoccidioidomycosis

BACKGROUND: Lung cancer is the most lethal type of cancer in the world. Several benign lung diseases may mimic lung carcinoma in its clinical and radiological presentation, which makes the differential diagnosis for granulomatous diseases more relevant in endemic regions like Brazil. This study was designed to describe the prevalence and the diagnostic work-up of benign diseases that mimic primary lung cancer in patients hospitalized at a university hospital from south of Brazil. METHODS: This was a transversal study, which evaluated the medical records of 1,056 patients hospitalized for lung cancer treatment from September 2003 to September 2013 at University Hospital of Santa Maria. RESULTS: Eight hundred and four patients underwent invasive procedures for suspected primary lung carcinoma. Primary lung cancer was confirmed in 77.4% of the patients. Benign disease was confirmed in 8% of all patients. Tuberculosis (n=14) and paracoccidioidomycosis (n=9) were the most frequent infectious diseases. The diagnosis of benign diseases was obtained by flexible bronchoscopy in 55.6% of the cases and by thoracotomy in 33.4%. CONCLUSION: Infectious diseases are the most frequent benign diseases mimicking lung cancer at their initial presentation. Many of these cases could be diagnosed by minimally invasive procedures such as flexible bronchoscopy. Benign diseases should be included in the differential diagnosis during the investigation for primary lung cancer in order to avoid higher cost procedures and mortality.
Brazil* ; Bronchoscopy ; Communicable Diseases ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Lung ; Lung Diseases ; Lung Neoplasms* ; Medical Records ; Mortality ; Paracoccidioidomycosis ; Prevalence* ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; Thoracotomy ; Tuberculosis

The awareness of classification and differential diagnosis of deep mycoses, particularly systemic infections due to pathogenic fungal infections, is essential for the early detection on and appropriate therapy. These systemic pathogenic fungal infections such as histoplasmosis, African histoplasmosis, paracoccidioidomycosis, blastomycosis, are usually endemic in limited areas of continents of America, and Africa. A newly recognized penicilliosis due to Penicillium marneffei, a dimorphic fungus, used to be endemic in Southeast Asia, is now world-wide new threat because the increased numbers of cases have been reported in Australia, France, Italy, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, and the United States. Because of the increased international visitors to the endemic areas and a significant enlargement of the populations existing in immunocompromized state, thus susceptible to systemic mycoses, we, the primary care physicians should be on the alert for the clinicopathologic aspects of the systemic mycoses to make a diagnosis early enough to institute effective therapy.
Africa ; Americas ; Asia, Southeastern ; Australia ; Blastomycosis ; Classification ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential* ; France ; Fungi ; Great Britain ; Histoplasmosis ; Humans ; Italy ; Mycoses* ; Netherlands ; Paracoccidioidomycosis ; Penicillium ; Physicians, Primary Care ; United States