title: Gender Aspects in Extranodal Marginal Zone B-Cell Lymphoma of the Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue: Does Sex Matter?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Gender-related aspects have been investigated in a variety of tumor entities including results on sex-specific differences in non-Hodgkin lymphoma. However, there are no data on gender differences in mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma.
  
  
  METHODS
  We have analyzed 327 patients treated between 1999 and 2015 with a median follow-up time of 55.2 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a female predominance, with 197 female (60.2%) and 130 male patients (39.8%, female-to-male ratio 1.5). The mean age was comparable between female and male patients (61.2 vs. 61.7 years, p = 0.777). Female patients less frequently had gastric MALT lymphoma (31.5 vs. 39.2%), but this was not statistically significant (p = 0.149). Extragastric manifestations were equally distributed, except for parotid (p = 0.003) and breast lymphoma (n = 8, 100% female) showing a female predominance. This was most likely related to a higher rate of active autoimmune disorders in women (35.6 vs. 11.0%, p < 0.001). β2-Microglobulin elevation at diagnosis occurred more often in female patients (42.8 vs. 26.0%; p = 0.008). However, this did not translate into a worse progression-free survival for female (56.0 months, 95% CI 30.1-81.9) versus male patients (49.0 months, 95% CI 25.4-72.5, p = 0.433). Overall survival did not differ between groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data show surprisingly little differences between female and male patients with MALT lymphoma. Both sexes appeared to have well-balanced clinical features and an identical prognosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine I, Clinical Division of Oncology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kiesewetter
authors.forename: Julius
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lukas
authors.forename: Werner
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Dolak
authors.forename: Ingrid
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Simonitsch-Klupp
authors.forename: Marius E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Mayerhoefer
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Raderer
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D018442:Lymphoma, B-Cell, Marginal Zone / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010307:Parotid Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015996:Survival Rate; D001613:beta 2-Microglobulin / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D001613:beta 2-Microglobulin