Associations between infectious mononucleosis and cancer: Record-linkage studies

18Citations
Citations of this article
38Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

Abstract

Infection with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) followed by infectious mononucleosis (IM) is now considered to be a risk factor for Hodgkin's disease (HD). It is less clear whether EBV infection and IM are associated with an increased risk of cancer generally. We used a longstanding record-linkage dataset in Oxford (years 1963-1998), and a more recent record-linkage dataset covering England (1999-2005), to compare rate ratios for cancer between people admitted to hospital for IM and a reference cohort. In the Oxford cohort, there was an increased risk of subsequent HD [rate ratio (RR) 6.0, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.4-12.5] but not of other cancers combined (RR 0.85, 95% CI 0.57-1.23). In the England cohort, there were increased risks of HD (RR 3.2, 95% CI 1.2-7.0), non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (RR 5.6, 95% CI 2.9-9.8), and oropharyngeal cancer (RR 5.4, 95% CI 1.1-1.2), but no significant overall risk of cancer when lymphomas were excluded (RR 1.01, 95% CI 0.71-1.41). We confirm an association between IM and lymphoma; but the risk, if any, of cancer more generally is likely to be small. © 2008 Cambridge University Press.

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Goldacre, M. J., Wotton, C. J., & Yeates, D. G. R. (2009). Associations between infectious mononucleosis and cancer: Record-linkage studies. Epidemiology and Infection, 137(5), 672–680. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0950268808001246

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free