EpsteinBarr virus-associated gastric carcinoma 33 years after kidney transplantation

Abstract

EpsteinBarr virus-associated gastric carcinoma (EBVaGC) is a unique type of gastric cancer, defined as the presence of EBV in gastric tumour cells, usually identified by in situ hybridization. A poorly differentiated gastric adenocarcinoma was detected in a kidney recipient 33 years after transplantation. Neoplastic epithelial cells were EBV positive by in situ hybridization. Gene sequencing confirmed the amplicon specificity, and real-time polymerase chain reaction quantified 2 600 000 genomes/μL DNA in neoplastic tissue. No cases of EBVaGC have been reported in solid organ transplants, thus this is the first case of de novo EBVaGC arising in a 65-year-old renal transplant recipient. © 2010 The Author. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of ERA-EDTA. All rights reserved.