Use of antiherpes drugs and the risk of Kaposi's sarcoma: data from the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study.
To determine if use of antiherpes drugs protects against the development of AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), data from 935 homosexual men with AIDS from the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study were analyzed. In nested case-control analysis, neither acyclovir use for human immunodeficiency virus infection (odds ratio [OR], 0.84; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.56-1.26; P = .39) nor acyclovir use for any indication (OR, 1.02; 95% CI, 0.76-1.38; P = .89) was associated with a reduced risk of KS as initial AIDS diagnosis. In longitudinal analysis, acyclovir was also not protective against developing KS as a late manifestation of AIDS (after initial non-KS AIDS diagnosis). Among men with cytomegalovirus disease, ganciclovir use (relative risk [RR], 0.56; 95% CI, 0.22-1.44; P = .23) and foscarnet use (RR, 0.40; 95% CI, 0.051-3.10; P = .38) were associated (although not significantly) with a reduced risk of KS. Thus, acyclovir use does not appear to reduce the risk of KS, but further study of other antiherpes drugs such as ganciclovir and foscarnet is warranted.
Glesby
M J
MJ
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205,USA.
Hoover
D R
DR
Weng
S
S
Graham
N M
NM
Phair
J P
JP
Detels
R
R
Ho
M
M
Saah
A J
AJ
D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000212:Acyclovir / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001727:Bisexuality; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D017245:Foscarnet / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015774:Ganciclovir / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control*; D018451:Homosexuality, Male; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D012306:Risk; D012514:Sarcoma, Kaposi / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control*
D000998:Antiviral Agents; D017245:Foscarnet; D015774:Ganciclovir; D000212:Acyclovir