Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia risk factors

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

This type of pneumonia is caused by the fungus Pneumocystis jiroveci. This fungus is common in the environment and does not cause illness in healthy people. However, it can cause a lung infection in people with a weakened immune system due to:

• Cancer
• Chronic use of corticosteroids or other medications that weaken the immune system
• HIV/AIDS
• Organ or bone marrow transplant

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