There's little data on how many cancer patients are treated for viral and bacterial infections each year. But health care experts report that the rate of infection among them during winter is higher than other times of the year. Cancer patients are more likely to wind up in the hospital at this time of year than someone who has a healthy immune system, said Ericka Hayes, assistant professor in pediatric infectious diseases at Washington University. "Their risk of having to come into the hospital is higher, and so is their risk of dying from it."
According to Aamina Akhtar, infectious disease specialist at St. Anthony's Medical Center, people who have HIV/AIDS, those who take immunosuppressant drugs to prevent their bodies from rejecting transplanted organs, and those with diabetes also run a high risk of contracting infections.
Transmission rates of germs increase during the winter, because we spend more time indoors, Akhtar said. "That's why they need to avoid places where people congregate, like malls."
Miller was diagnosed with cancer in July. In August, the upper half of his colon was surgically removed. It contained a malignant mass the size of his fist. Cancer cells had spread from the innermost layer of his colon to outer layers and to four nearby lymph nodes. In October, after surviving a life-threatening bacterial infection, he began getting chemotherapy every other week.
His blood counts are checked between infusions and again immediately before each one. When his white blood cell counts plunge, Miller is hyper-vigilant about avoiding germs.
Methods to prevent infection among cancer patients have improved in the last decade. Patients are vaccinated against flu and pneumonia and injected with drugs that boost their blood counts.
