Healthcare-associated infections after elective surgery for gastrointestinal cancer in a Romanian tertiary center: incidence, microbiological profile, and the role of neoadjuvant radiotherapy as an independent risk factor

BackgroundHealthcare-associated infections following gastrointestinal cancer surgery are typically reported in terms of surgical site infection alone, with limited data on the broader infectious spectrum, comparative microbiology between upper and lower gastrointestinal surgery, and antimicrobial resistance in Eastern European centers. We aimed to describe the incidence, types, risk factors, an...