People infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) are at an increased risk of developing certain lymphomas (cancers of the lymphatic system), according to a study published in the May 8, 2007, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and Baylor College of Medicine, found that HCV infection increased the risk of developing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma by 20 percent to 30 percent. The risk of developing Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia (a rare type of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma) went up by 300 percent and the risk for cryoglobulinemia, a condition marked by abnormal levels of certain antibodies in the blood, was also elevated for those with HCV infections.>>> Discuss This Story
