title: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma and nasal allergy: any correlation?
abstract: Although it has been observed that nasal allergy is rarely seen in patients who have nasopharyngeal carcinoma, to our knowledge, no actual study of such a lack of association has been previously reported. To fill this void, we conducted a pilot study to investigate any such inverse relationship. We conducted skin-prick allergen tests on 22 patients with newly diagnosed but not-yet-treated nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Combining these test results with findings on the history and clinical examination, we concluded that only one of the 22 cancer patients (4.5%) had allergic rhinitis. Our study also confirmed the validity of using findings on the history, clinical examination, and skin-prick testing as a reliable means of diagnosing allergic rhinitis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, University of Malaya Medical Center, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. prepageran@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Narayanan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Prepageran
authors.forename: Omkara Rubini
authors.initials: OR
authors.lastname: Lingham
authors.forename: Gopala
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Krishnan
authors.forename: Mohammad Amin
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Jalaludin
authors.forename: Rajagopalan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Raman
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012221:Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006255:Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012882:Skin Tests