Infections Responsible for Small Proportion of Cancers in the US

Infections were responsible for about 4% of adult cancer diagnoses in the United States in 2017, according to research published in JAMA Oncology.

The most common infection contributing to cancers was human papilloma virus (HPV). This was followed by Helicobacter pylori, hepatitis C virus (HCV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), and hepatitis B virus (HBV).

For this study, researchers conducted a literature review and meta-analysis of 128 studies.

The researchers found that 1,666,102 cancers were diagnosed in US adults in 2017. Infections were responsible for 4.3% of those cancers, which translates to 71,485 infection-attributable cancers.

Of all the cancers diagnosed:

• 2.3% were attributable to HPV (n=38,230)
• 0.6% were attributable to H pylori (n=10,624)
• 0.5% were attributable to HCV (n=9006)
• 0.5% were attributable to EBV (n=7581)
• 0.1% were attributable to HBV (n=2310)
• 0.1% were attributable to Merkel cell polyomavirus (n=2000)
• 0.06% were attributable to Kaposi sarcoma–associated herpesvirus (n=1075)
• 0.04% were attributable to human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (n=659).

The cancers with the highest number of infection-attributable cases were:

• Cervical cancer (HPV; n=12,829)
• Gastric cancer (H pylori and EBV; n=12,565)
• Oropharyngeal cancer (HPV; n=12,430)
• Hepatocellular carcinoma (HBV and HCV; n=10,017).

Infection-attributable cancers accounted for 9.6% of cancers in women aged 20-34 years and 3.2% in women aged 65 and older. Infection-attributable cancers accounted for 6.1% of cancers in men aged 20-34 years and 3.3% in men aged 65 and older.

“Infections … represent an important target for the development of prevention efforts (for EBV) and the continuation of current approaches (for HBV, HCV, H pylori, and HPV) to reduce their prevalence and associated disease burden,” the researchers wrote.

Disclosures: Some study authors declared affiliations with biotech, pharmaceutical, and/or device companies. Please see the original reference for a full list of disclosures.

Reference

Volesky-Avellaneda KD, Morais S, Walter SD, et al. Cancers attributable to infections in the US in 2017: A meta-analysis. JAMA Oncol. Published online October 19, 2023. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2023.4273