Cancer Among HIV-Infected People in North America

Now that antiretroviral therapy (ART) has prolonged the lives of HIV-infected patients, various cancers have become increasingly common. However, whether this effect stems from longer lifespan or represents a true increase in incidence remains uncertain. In HIV-infected people, cancer risk may be increased because of impaired immune function and chronic inflammation or the presence of risk factors such as viral coinfections or smoking.

In a study involving 16 NA-ACCORD cohorts from the U.S. and Canada, investigators compared trends in cumulative incidence of nine cancers (lung, anal, colorectal, liver, and oropharyngeal cancers, Kaposi sarcoma [KS], non-Hodgkin lymphoma [NHL], Hodgkin disease [HL], and melanoma) between 86,620 HIV-infected a…