Fungal Empyema Thoracis due to Candida species: A diagnosis on fine needle aspiration cytology

Abstract

: Fungal empyema thoracis is a rare and emerging entity, and the increase in the rate of fungal infections is mainly due to the increasing use of broad-spectrum antibiotics, intravascular devices, and hyperalimentation, as well as to the increasing number of critically ill or immunocompromised patients. Candida species are the most common pathogens in fungal empyema thoracis, and it is extremely rare to isolate fungi as such in pleural fluid. We report here a 60-year-old male with a case of gastric carcinoma with perforation peritonitis who underwent laparotomy and partial gastrectomy and developed pleural effusion postsurgery. Cytological examination of the pleural fluid showed many yeast, budding, and pseudohyphae forms of fungal organisms morphologically consistent with Candida species in the background of inflammation.