Anti–Tumor Necrosis Factor Agents Are Associated with Risk for Lymphoma

Evaluations of the risk for lymphoma in patients being treated with anti–tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) drugs for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have produced inconsistent results. To assess this risk, investigators examined the records of a nationwide French cohort of 189,000 IBD patients, aged 18 years or older, without HIV and with no prior history of cancer or organ transplantation. Compared with the risk for developing lymphoma in patients who received neither thiopurine nor anti-TNF agents, the hazard ratio for lymphoma was 2.60 in thiopurine recipients, 2.41 in anti-TNF therapy recipients, and 6.11 in combination therapy recipients. The risks for developing non-Hodgkin and Hodgkin lymphoma were similarly increased.