Considerable progress has been made in the treatment of infections in
neutropenic patients during the past three decades. A major contributi
on to this progress has been the discovery of effective new therapies
and their prompt administration, Unfortunately, successful therapy of
each important pathogen has resulted in the emergence of new pathogens
, usually with unique patterns of antibiotic susceptibility, Unfortuna
tely, antibiotic resistance has become an increasing threat in recent
years, raising the possibility of infections that will be difficult to
eradicate, Fortunately, there are new classes of antimicrobials that
hold promise for therapeutic success in the future.