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Is the Increased Incidence of Lymphoma in Vietnam Veterans due to an Undescribed Infectious Agent?

Is the Increased Incidence of Lymphoma in Vietnam Veterans due to an Undescribed Infectious Agent? Abstract To the Editor.— I read with interest the combined reports of the Selected Cancers Cooperative Study Group.1 These well-designed and executed studies demonstrate a statistically significant increased risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in Vietnam veterans relative to a control cohort. This risk appears to be independent of the use of Agent Orange.1 The cause of this increased risk remains obscure, although the authors present several speculative hypotheses. They note that the veterans may possess some characteristic(s) related to service in Vietnam, such as a viral infection, which could explain the risk. I agree that this is a quite reasonable explanation for the increased risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in these individuals.Southeast Asia could be the home of an as yet undescribed oncogenic retrovirus with a low degree of disease expression after infection. A certain percentage of individuals exposed to the putative agent would be infected, and a much smaller References 1. The Selected Cancers Cooperative Study Group. The association of selected cancers with service in the US military in Vietnam, I: Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma . Arch Intern Med. 1990;1502473-2483.Crossref 2. Tajima K, Komura S, Ito S. Epidemiologic features of HTLV-I carriers and incidence of ATL in an ATL-endemic island: a report of a community-based cooperative study in Tsushiri, Japan . Int J Cancer. 1987;40:741-746.Crossref 3. Drabick JJ, Horning VL, Lennox JL, et al. A retrospective analysis of diseases associated with indeterminate HIV Western blot patterns . Milit Med. 1991;156:93-96. 4. Gill GV, Bell DR. Strongyloides stercoralis infection in former Far East prisoners of war . BMJ. 1979;2:572-574.Crossref http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Archives of Internal Medicine American Medical Association

Is the Increased Incidence of Lymphoma in Vietnam Veterans due to an Undescribed Infectious Agent?

Drabick, Joseph J.
Archives of Internal Medicine , Volume 151 (7) – Jul 1, 1991
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References (5)

Publisher
American Medical Association
Copyright
Copyright © 1991 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.
ISSN
0003-9926
eISSN
1538-3679
DOI
10.1001/archinte.1991.00400070200038
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Abstract To the Editor.— I read with interest the combined reports of the Selected Cancers Cooperative Study Group.1 These well-designed and executed studies demonstrate a statistically significant increased risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in Vietnam veterans relative to a control cohort. This risk appears to be independent of the use of Agent Orange.1 The cause of this increased risk remains obscure, although the authors present several speculative hypotheses. They note that the veterans may possess some characteristic(s) related to service in Vietnam, such as a viral infection, which could explain the risk. I agree that this is a quite reasonable explanation for the increased risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in these individuals.Southeast Asia could be the home of an as yet undescribed oncogenic retrovirus with a low degree of disease expression after infection. A certain percentage of individuals exposed to the putative agent would be infected, and a much smaller References 1. The Selected Cancers Cooperative Study Group. The association of selected cancers with service in the US military in Vietnam, I: Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma . Arch Intern Med. 1990;1502473-2483.Crossref 2. Tajima K, Komura S, Ito S. Epidemiologic features of HTLV-I carriers and incidence of ATL in an ATL-endemic island: a report of a community-based cooperative study in Tsushiri, Japan . Int J Cancer. 1987;40:741-746.Crossref 3. Drabick JJ, Horning VL, Lennox JL, et al. A retrospective analysis of diseases associated with indeterminate HIV Western blot patterns . Milit Med. 1991;156:93-96. 4. Gill GV, Bell DR. Strongyloides stercoralis infection in former Far East prisoners of war . BMJ. 1979;2:572-574.Crossref

Journal

Archives of Internal Medicine – American Medical Association

Published: Jul 1, 1991

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