Successful response to cidofovir of adenovirus hepatitis during chemotherapy in a child with hepatoblastoma.

BACKGROUND: Adenoviral infections are endemic in the pediatric population. Most of these infections are mild and self-limited in immunocompetent individuals. Although in profoundly immunocompromised hosts after solid organ or stem cell transplantation, adenovirus may cause fulminant hepatitis or other life-threatening infections, this is a rare complication in patients receiving standard chemotherapy. OBSERVATION: We report a case of severe adenovirus hepatitis in a 7-month-old child receiving induction chemotherapy for hepatoblastoma who fully recovered after treatment with cidofovir. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the first report documenting recovering of severe adenoviral hepatitis in a nontransplanted immunocompromised host.