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Viral factors

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

A number of DNA and RNA viruses have been associated with neoplasia:

  • human papilloma virus:
    • thought to be transmitted sexually
    • linked to squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix - 90-95% of cases contain HPV, subtypes 16 and 18 being the most common
    • cervical carcinoma is particularly associated with an early age at first sexual intercourse and a large number of sexual partners, both supporting the theory of spread of the oncogenic virus
  • Epstein-Barr virus:
    • linked in a complex way to the production of Burkitt's lymphoma in Africa; possibly related to an abnormal immune response triggered by malaria
    • in certain geographic locations, e.g. Southern China and parts of Africa, the virus is invariably associated with the onset of nasopharyngeal carcinoma
  • hepatitis B virus: strongly linked to the production of hepatocellular carcinoma, especially in association with aflatoxin from Aspergillus flavus
  • human T-cell leukaemia virus:
    • associated with the production of leukaemia and lymphoma in certain parts of Japan and the Caribbean
    • a T-cell growth factor and receptor seem to be switched on in the same cell, thus causing autocrine proliferation

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