Ben Dhiab Myriam1, Ziadi Sonia1, Saad Hanene1, Louhichi Teheni1, Trimeche Mounir2. 1. Department of Pathology, University Hospital Farhat-Hached, Sousse 4000, Tunisia. 2. Department of Pathology, University Hospital Farhat-Hached, Sousse 4000, Tunisia. Electronic address: m_trimech@yahoo.fr.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The prognostic significance of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection in Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is still controversial. In this work we sought to examine the prognostic differences between EBV-positive and -negative HL through a series of 131 cases from Tunisia. METHODS: The status of EBV was assessed by EBV-encoded RNA (EBER) in situ hybridization. Results were correlated to patients' characteristics and outcome. RESULTS: EBV was detected in the malignant cells in 62 of 131 HL cases (47.3%). EBV-positive HL was associated with extreme age classes (≤15 and > 45 years; p = 0.0001), male gender (p = 0.008), mixed cellularity histologic subtype (p = 0.03), and inversely with leukocytosis (white blood cells ≥15000/mm3) (p = 0.004) and bulky mediastinum (mediastinal-thoracic ratio≥ 0.35) (p = 0.0001). On analysis of all patients, no significant difference between survival rates was found between EBV-positive and EBV-negative HL. In contrast, subgroups analysis revealed a negative effect of EBV infection in terms of overall survival in patients with Ann Arbor stages I/II (p = 0.03) and nodular sclerosis HL subgroup (p = 0.01), and in terms of event free survival in patients with mediastinal-thoracic ratio less than 0.35 (p = 0.03). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that EBV infection affects the survival of particular subgroups of HL, especially those with early-stage of the disease.
INTRODUCTION: The prognostic significance of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection in Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is still controversial. In this work we sought to examine the prognostic differences between EBV-positive and -negative HL through a series of 131 cases from Tunisia. METHODS: The status of EBV was assessed by EBV-encoded RNA (EBER) in situ hybridization. Results were correlated to patients' characteristics and outcome. RESULTS:EBV was detected in the malignant cells in 62 of 131 HL cases (47.3%). EBV-positive HL was associated with extreme age classes (≤15 and > 45 years; p = 0.0001), male gender (p = 0.008), mixed cellularity histologic subtype (p = 0.03), and inversely with leukocytosis (white blood cells ≥15000/mm3) (p = 0.004) and bulky mediastinum (mediastinal-thoracic ratio≥ 0.35) (p = 0.0001). On analysis of all patients, no significant difference between survival rates was found between EBV-positive and EBV-negative HL. In contrast, subgroups analysis revealed a negative effect of EBV infection in terms of overall survival in patients with Ann Arbor stages I/II (p = 0.03) and nodular sclerosis HL subgroup (p = 0.01), and in terms of event free survival in patients with mediastinal-thoracic ratio less than 0.35 (p = 0.03). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that EBV infection affects the survival of particular subgroups of HL, especially those with early-stage of the disease.
Authors: Mahdi Nohtani; Katerina Vrzalikova; Maha Ibrahim; Judith E Powell; Éanna Fennell; Susan Morgan; Richard Grundy; Keith McCarthy; Sarah Dewberry; Jan Bouchal; Katerina Bouchalova; Pamela Kearns; Paul G Murray Journal: Cancers (Basel) Date: 2022-09-01 Impact factor: 6.575