Spectrum of cancers among HIV-infected persons in Africa: the Uganda AIDS-Cancer Registry Match Study.
Although more than 25 million people in sub-Saharan Africa have human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, little is known regarding their cancer risk. We investigated cancer risk among persons with HIV/AIDS in Uganda using record-linkage. We linked records of 12,607 HIV-infected persons attending The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) in Kyadondo County from October 1988 through December 2002 to the Kampala Cancer Registry. We calculated standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) to identify increased cancer risks in the early (4-27 months after TASO registration), late (28-60 months), or combined (4-60 months) incidence periods. We identified 378 cancers (181 prevalent, 197 incident) among TASO participants. Of incident cancers, 137 (70%) were AIDS-defining cancers. Risk was increased in the early-incident period, compared to the general population, for the AIDS-defining cancers: Kaposi sarcoma (SIR 6.4, 95%CI 4.8-8.4), non-Hodgkin lymphoma (6.7, 1.8-17), and cervical carcinoma (2.4, 1.1-4.4). These three cancers were also increased in the combined periods. Risks of five non-AIDS-defining cancers were increased in the combined periods: Hodgkin lymphoma (5.7, 1.2-17) and cancers of the conjunctiva (SIR 4.0; 1.5-8.7), kidney (16, 1.8-58), thyroid (5.7, 1.1-16), and uterus (5.5, 1.5-14). Cancers of the breast, nasopharynx, and lung were increased either in the early or late incident periods only. Among 407 children, seven cancers were observed, of which five were Kaposi sarcoma. The application of a record-linkage design in Africa broadens the repertoire of epidemiological tools for studying HIV-infected populations. We confirm the increased risks of AIDS-defining cancers and report increased risks of a few non-AIDS-defining cancers.
Mbulaiteye
Sam M
SM
Division Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD 20852, USA. mbulaits@mail.nih.gov
Katabira
Elly T
ET
Wabinga
Henry
H
Parkin
Donald M
DM
Virgo
Phillip
P
Ochai
Robert
R
Workneh
Meklit
M
Coutinho
Alex
A
Engels
Eric A
EA
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012042:Registries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012307:Risk Factors; D014454:Uganda / Q000453:epidemiology