Shame on us for talking in jargon without explaining the terms. Here's a little glossary for you.

NTM is non-tubercular mycobacteria, which is typically slow growing bacteria. The most common causes of our infections are mycobacteria avuim and mycobacteria intracellulare, which we typically abbreviate as MAC (maycobacteria avium complex) - there are dozens of more rare strains as well. The most concerning of those are mycobacteria abscessus (abbreviated M. abscessus) because it is rapid-growing and doesn't respond to the usual "Big 3" antibiotics. Another is M. cheloanae which is usually a hospital-acquired infection dangerous to people with compromised immune systems.

The Big 3 are the three antibiotics typically prescribed for MAC - azithromycin (or more rarely clarithromycin), ethambutol and rifampin.

BE or more rarely BX is Bronchiectasis, a disease of the lungs where the ends of the bronchioles become stretched out, and sort of hard so the don't work properly with the cilia to move mucus out. There is rarely an explicit, known reason why any person "gets" Bronchiectasis, but some contributing factors include repeated lung infections or pneumonia, long term or undertreated asthma or COPD, exposure to irritating substances, and being a carrier of the Cystic Fibrosis gene.

DX stands for diagnosis

ABX stands for antibiotics

I need a reminder like this from time to time - sometimes we resort to abbreviations when we are in a hurry. Or I might be responding to someone very familiar with the terms, forgetting that this is a forum where many people may be reading our conversations!