Catheter-related bacteremia caused by Agrobacterium radiobacter in a cancer patient: case report and literature review

Agrobacteria are a group of phytopathogenic organisms widely distributed in soil; they are now recognized as rare human pathogens affecting mostly immunocompromised hosts. We report a case of catheter-related bacteremia due to Agrobacterium radiobacter in a neutropenic patient and describe the clinical presentations, treatment strategies and outcome of Agrobacterium infections based on our experience and a literature review. The antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of these organisms appear to be quite variable and collective susceptibility data derived from this and previous reports are provided.