(The College of Science at the University of Basra organized a panel discussion on airborne fungi in the internal hospital environment and its relationship to fungal infections in cancer patients).

 For a postgraduate / master's student {Zahraa Dawad Kataa}.

Aim of the study ::-

The study aims to clarify the relationship between the air fungi in the indoor hospital environment and its effect on cancer patients, and to note the most common and frequent types of fungal species, as the hospital environment is the most common place for fungi to exist, as it can be found on floors, on work surfaces, and in ventilation holes, and some of them can be found on Medical staff and patients and also naturally present in the digestive system, reproductive system and respiratory system.

The outdoor air is the main source in increasing the concentration of fungal spores in the hospital’s internal environment, where it can enter through doors and windows. These fungi are opportunistic organisms that can cause diseases in immunocompromised persons. The most common fungal species are:

And also the genus Candida spp, Aspergellus  spp, Cladosporiums spp, Alternaria spp, Pencellium spp, Mucor spp

   and other races. The most susceptible patients to infection with fungi are cancer patients receiving chemotherapy, as well as organ transplant patients, immunodeficiency patients, premature babies and diabetics. Among the factors that helped some of these fungi to cause their diseases is their possession of virulence factors such as enzymes and surface molecules for adhesion and the ability to transform morphology.

Fungal infections range from superficial infections that include skin, nails and hair to deep infections that may reach the bloodstream and cause sepsis, as well as infect other organs in the body such as the liver, spleen, kidneys, brain, bones and soft tissues. These fungi exploit modern technological means to reach the bloodstream.

The safe environment and the prevention of diseases (bacterial or viral) and surgical intervention in cases that require intervention, determining the appropriate medical treatment, and knowing or discovering resistant treatments and immunotherapy are among the most important factors that help in limiting and controlling fungal diseases.