Investigating the relationship between infectious mononucleosis and increased risk of lymphoma cancer

Investigating the relationship between infectious mononucleosis and increased risk of lymphoma cancer
Hossein Bakhtiari-Dovvombaygi,¹ Fatemeh assar,² Parisa Khorsand noughabi,³ Farzaneh Pardehshenas,^4,*
1. Student Research Committee, Torbat Heydariyeh University of Medical Sciences, Torbat Heydariyeh, Iran
2. Student Research Committee , faculty of Basic Sciences ,Mashhad Islamic Azad University,Mashhad,Iran
3. Student Research Committee, School Of Nursery and Midwifery, Mashhad Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran
4. Student Research Committee, School Of Nursery and Midwifery, Mashhad Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran
Introduction: Infectious mononucleosis (IM) is a common infection worldwide that affects about 95% of the world's population. The causative agent of this disease is the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which belongs to the Herpesviridae family. This virus can be transmitted through saliva and sex. There is considerable evidence that IM and its causative virus (EBV) can contribute to cancers such as lymphoma (Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's). Therefore, our study aims to investigate the relationship between a history of IM and an increased risk of lymphoma.
Methods: This review was conducted on Google Scholar, Pubmed, Scopus, and Sid databases from 2000 to 2020. Keywords Included infectious mononucleosis, lymphoma. A search of the databases with the title filter found 64 articles, of which 52 articles were deleted by reading the title and abstract. The imported articles included Persian and English articles.
Results: Finally, 12 articles were included in our study. In 7 articles, a positive relationship between the history of IM and Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) was mentioned. A number of two articles also examined the relationship between IM and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). In a 2013 study of 29 NHL tissue samples at Imam Khomeini Hospital in Ahvaz, Iran, it was found that 48% of the samples were significantly positive for EBV. One study also found that the risk of developing lymphoma after mononucleosis is more common in young people and the first two decades of life (with an average of 2/9 years later) so that the risk of developing lymphoma decreased with age.
Conclusion: Based on our study, we conclude that IM can be considered a risk factor for lymphoma. Therefore, considering the pathogenesis and transmission of this virus, further studies are needed on the risk of lymphoma in relatives of people with IM is recommended.
Keywords: Included infectious mononucleosis, lymphoma