Journal
BLOOD
Volume 114, Issue 19, Pages 4014-4020Publisher
AMER SOC HEMATOLOGY
DOI: 10.1182/blood-2009-03-209601
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Funding
- NCI NIH HHS [R03CA110836-01A2, 1R01CA58839, R03 CA110836, 1R03CA110836-01A2] Funding Source: Medline
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The pattern of adolescent/young adult Hodgkin lymphoma (YAHL) suggests causation by a relatively late infection with a common childhood virus, but no causal virus has been found. Susceptibility is heritable and linked to lower interleukin 12 (IL12) levels, which can also result from fewer fecal-oral microbial exposures early in life. We studied twin pairs discordant for YAHL to examine exposures capable of altering the IL12 response and T-helper type 1 (Th1)-Th2 balance. One hundred eighty-eight YAHL-discordant twin pairs from the International Twin Study returned questionnaires (70% response). Exposure history of YAHL case-twins was compared with that of their unaffected control-twins using conditional logistic regression for matched pairs to calculate odds ratios (ORs). Behaviors likely to produce oral exposure to microbes conveyed decreases in risk (univariable OR range = 0.2-0.5, P = .003-.11). Significant adjusted ORs were seen for appendectomy (OR = 4.3, P = .001), eczema(OR = 4.2, P = .025), smoking (OR = 2.2, P = .054), and relatively more frequent behaviors associated with oral exposures (OR = 0.1; P = .004). Kappa statistics for intrapair agreement were higher than 0.8 for each significant finding. Our observations support a protective role for increased early oral exposure to the microbiome, suggesting that factors associated with increased Th2 and decreased Th1 cytokines are etiologically relevant to YAHL. (Blood. 2009; 114: 4014-4020)
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