Treatment Does Not Lower Cancer Risks

Although antiretroviral therapy does reduce the risk for AIDS-related cancers Kaposi's sarcoma and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, it does not prevent the development of virtually any other type of cancer, according to a study in the March 16 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. To gauge the effect of anti-HIV drugs and improvement of the immune system on cancer development, researchers studied data from more than 7,300 people from the Swiss HIV Cohort Study as well as Swiss cancer statistics. They found that HIV-positive people face higher risks for KS, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin's lymphoma, anal cancer, cervical cancer, liver cancer, and other malignancies. But antiretroviral treatment was shown to reduce only incidences of KS and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma among HIV patients. Rates of other cancers for which HIVers were shown to be at a higher risk were not affected by anti-HIV drugs.