Racheal S Dube Mandishora, Luisa Galati, Richard R Reich, Jean-Damien Combes, Sandrine McKay-Chopin, Rudo Makunike-Mutasa, Rangarirai Masanganise, Bevele Gwambiwa, Tricia Magombei, Francesco Alfredo Zito, Pagona Lagiou, Gary M Clifford, Anna R Giuliano, Anna E Coghill, Massimo Tommasino, Tarik Gheit
Incidence of conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) in Zimbabwe is >30-fold higher than the global average. cSCC risk is notably higher among people with human immunodeficiency virus, implicating impaired immune response and a yet unknown infectious etiology. Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded blocks from Zimbabwe, comprising conjunctival precancer (n = 78), invasive cSCC cases (n = 148) and nonmalignant eye lesions (n = 119), were tested for multiple DNA viruses using Luminex bead-based technology. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) type 1 positivity was strongly associated with cSCC diagnosis (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 5...
April 2024: Open Forum Infectious Diseases