Ellen G. Feigal, MD

The association between HIV infection and the development of cancer was noted early in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic. The AIDS-defining malignancies are Kaposi’s sarcoma, intermediate- or high-grade B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), and cervical cancer. All of these cancers feature specific infectious agents in their etiology. These agents are human herpesvirus 8/Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus, or HHV-8/KSHV (implicated in Kaposi’s sarcoma), Epstein-Barr virus, or EBV (in primary central nervous system lymphoma and a subset of systemic B-cell NHL) and human papillomavirus, or HPV (in cervical cancer).[1]

The tumor, node, metastases (TNM) cancer staging system is widely accepted by physicians as a predictor of prognosis and as a guide to therapy. Multiple national and international organizations, including the American Joint Committee on Cancer and the TNM Committee of the International Union Against Cancer have periodically evaluated and revised this international staging system since it was first proposed over four decades ago [1].