Frank P. Dunbar

A clinical study of the chronic lung disease due to nonphotochromogenic acid-fast bacilli.

Excerpt Before the development of cultural methods, the diagnosis of tuberculosis was based upon the finding of acid-fast bacilli on microscopic examination, positive tuberculin skin test, and char...

COMPARISONS BETWEEN MYCOBACTERIA AND ISOLATES FROM TUMORS AND LEUKEMIC BLOODS

A number of investigators1“ have reported the recovery of highly pleomorphic, intermittently acid-fast organisms from the tissues or blood of patients with tumors or with leukemia. Similar organisms have been isolated from a variety of sources, including the blood of human contacts with patients with malignancies. In addition to the acid-fast properties described for these strains, Dille9 reported that serological studies had revealed cross-reactions with Mycobacteriurn tuberculosis and other species of mycobacteria. Forty-three cultures representing a total of 35 strains from carcinomas and other sources5 were obtained through the courtesy of Seibert. Since these organisms had not been identified as members of a single species, they will be referred to in this report as “unnamed strains.” Their morphological and cultural characteristics were recently described in detail by Seibert and her associates.e The purpose of this study was to determine whether these unnamed organisms could be identified as mycobacteria by a few of the procedures used for the identification of Runyon’s7 groups of acid-fast organisms, some of which have recently attained species status. With the procedures used, these unnamed strains could not be identified as mycobacteria.