Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Nov 15;317(1):20.
doi: 10.1007/s00403-024-03529-5.

Skin cancer in patients who are co-infected with HIV/ HBV or HIV/HCV: a systematic review

Woori Lee  1 , Daniel K Cho  2 , Sara D Ragi  3 , Amor Khachemoune  4   5   6
Affiliations

Skin cancer in patients who are co-infected with HIV/ HBV or HIV/HCV: a systematic review

Woori Lee et al. Arch Dermatol Res. .

Abstract

Skin cancer, the most common cancer in the United States, has been well-described in the literature to be associated with environmental factors including ultraviolet (UV) radiation. However, the effect of chronic viral infections on risk of skin cancer development, particularly in individuals co-infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Hepatitis B or C Viruses (HBV/HCV), has yet to be elucidated. This systematic review aims to be one of the first to consolidate existing literature and examine the relationship between skin cancer and HIV/HBV and HIV/HCV co-infections. We conducted a systematic review following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, searching MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL, and Web of Science databases for studies published from inception to March 26, 2024. Inclusion criteria for studies included only those reporting on HBV and/or HCV in people living with HIV (PLWH). Five studies were ultimately included for analysis. The review identified multiple non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC) and cutaneous adnexal carcinomas in HIV/HCV or HIV/HBV co-infected patients. Notably, Pilomatrical carcinomas were observed in co-infected individuals. Sarcomas including Kaposi sarcoma and low-grade fibroblastic sarcoma were also linked to HIV/HCV or HIV/HBV infections. However, the studies primarily focused on specific types of cancers without elucidating the underlying mechanisms for the association between HIV/HCV/HBV infection and sarcoma development. In summary, this review suggests a potential link between HIV/HCV and HIV/HBV co-infection and certain types of skin cancer, namely adnexal carcinomas. Further research is crucial to determine the underlying mechanisms, explore the association with different skin cancer types, and identify effective prevention and treatment strategies for co-infected individuals.

Keywords: Co-infection; HIV; Hepatitis B; Hepatitis C; Skin cancer.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declarations Ethical approval All work reported in the paper has been performed by the authors, unless clearly specified in the text. Disclosure The authors have no financial relationships relevant to this article to disclose. Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests.

References

    1. Hung M, Beazer IR, Su S, Bounsanga J, Hon ES, Lipsky MS (2022) An exploration of the Use and Impact of preventive measures on skin Cancer. Healthcare 10(4):743. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10040743 - DOI - PubMed - PMC
    1. Omland SH, Ahlström MG, Gerstoft J, Pedersen G, Mohey R, Pedersen C et al (2018) Risk of skin cancer in patients with HIV: a Danish nationwide cohort study. J Am Acad Dermatol 79(4):689–695. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaad.2018.03.024 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Silverberg MJ, Leyden W, Warton EM, Quesenberry CP, Engels EA, Asgari MM (2013) HIV infection status, Immunodeficiency, and the incidence of Non-melanoma skin Cancer. JNCI J Natl Cancer Inst 105(5):350–360. https://doi.org/10.1093/jnci/djs529 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hu J, Liu K, Luo J (2019) HIV–HBV and HIV–HCV Coinfection and Liver Cancer, 2nd edn. Springer, pp 231–250
    1. Singal AK, Anand BS (2009) Management of hepatitis C virus infection in HIV/HCV co-infected patients: clinical review. World J Gastroenterol 15(30):3713. https://doi.org/10.3748/wjg.15.3713 - DOI - PubMed - PMC

Publication types

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources