Hematopoietic Cell Transplant Safe in HIV-Related Lymphoma
Autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation is a safe and effective treatment option for patients with HIV-associated lymphoma, according to a study presented at ASH 2014.
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Autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation is a safe and effective treatment option for patients with HIV-associated lymphoma, according to a study presented at ASH 2014.
With National HIV Testing Day recently behind us and the 19th International AIDS conference happening later in July in Washington, DC, I would like to share some recent HIV/AIDS statistical, research, and policy highlights.
We’re now entering the fourth decade of HIV/AIDS awareness. Last year marked the 30th anniversary of the earliest report (on June 5, 1981) of what is now known as AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome).
Thanks to the widespread use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), AIDS patients continue to live longer after their initial diagnosis.
Though there are no data yet on their efficacy, oleander extracts are promoted to treat cancer, AIDS, and congestive heart failure, and are being investigated in clinical trials.
HIV’s disruption of immune system function may cause the immune system cells themselves to become cancerous, NCI researchers have concluded. If so, this might explain why patients with AIDS are 100 times more likely to be diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma than the general population.
The treatment of anal squamous cell cancer with definitive chemoradiation is the gold-standard therapy for localized anal cancer, primarily because of its sphincter-saving and colostomy-sparing potential.
Although anal cancer is a rare disease, its incidence is increasing in men and women worldwide. The most important risk factors are behaviors that predispose individuals to human papillomavirus (HPV) infection or immunosuppression. Anal cancer is generally preceded by high-grade anal intraepithelial neoplasia (HGAIN), which is most prevalent in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive men who have sex with men. There is a general consensus that high-risk individuals may benefit from screening. Meta-analysis suggests that 80% of anal cancers could be avoided by vaccination against HPV 16/18. Nearly half of all patients with anal cancer present with rectal bleeding. Pain or sensation of a rectal mass is experienced in 30% of patients, whereas 20% have no tumor-specific symptoms. According to the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database, 50% of patients with anal cancer have disease localized to the anus, 29% have regional lymph node involvement or direct spread beyond the primary, and 12% have metastatic disease, while 9% have an unknown stage. Clinical staging of anal carcinoma requires a digital rectal exam and a computed tomography scan of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis. Suspicious inguinal lymph nodes should be subject to pathologic confirmation by fine-needle aspiration. The 5-year relative survival rates are 80.1% for localized anal cancer, 60.7% for regional disease, and 29.4% for metastatic disease. Part 2 of this two-part review will address the treatment of anal cancer, highlighting studies of chemoradiation.
Reishi mushroom is widely used in Asia and around the world as an immunostimulant. With extracts derived from both the cap and the stem of the mushroom, its biologic activity is thought be due to beta-glucan polysaccharides and compounds called triterpenes.
The article by Kauh and colleagues
provides a timely review
of the therapeutic approach
to invasive carcinoma of the
anus in human immunodeficiency virus
(HIV)-infected patients, which is
an emerging clinical problem. Important
limitations of the published experience,
however, need to be pointed
out; given the present pursuit of more
targeted anticancer therapy, new avenues
are being explored, even in the
management of HIV-associated anal
cancer.
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