High prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection in B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
In this hospital-based, multicenter case-control study we investigated the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related markers and HBV/hepatitis C virus (HCV) co-infection among B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (B-NHL) cases and controls. Four hundred newly diagnosed B-NHL cases and 392 controls from other departments of the same hospitals were studied. The prevalence of positivity for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) was 8.5% among B-NHL cases and 2.8% among controls (adjusted odds ratio, 3.67; 95% confidence interval, 1.75-7.66). HBV/HCV co-infection was found in four cases, but in no controls. The finding of a positive association between HBV infection and B-NHL raises the possibility that HBV may play an etiologic role in the induction of B-NHL.
Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy. fabmarcu@tin.it
Fabrizio
F
Marcucci
Alfonso
A
Mele
Enea
E
Spada
Angela
A
Candido
Elvira
E
Bianco
Alessandro
A
Pulsoni
Paola
P
Chionne
Elisabetta
E
Madonna
Rodolfo
R
Cotichini
Anna
A
Barbui
Amalia
A
De Renzo
Fausto
F
Dore
Emilio
E
Iannitto
Vincenzo
V
Liso
Bruno
B
Martino
Marco
M
Montanaro
Livio
L
Pagano
Pellegrino
P
Musto
Maria
M
Rapicetta
D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000821:virology*; D015995:Prevalence
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies