HIV/AIDS-associated malignancies
HIV/AIDS-associated malignancies present treatment challenges for physicians and a serious public health problem in nations with a high incidence of these cancers. Kaposi's sarcoma, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (including primary central nervous system lymphoma), and cervical carcinoma are all more prevalent in individuals with HIV/AIDS.
- Photo: Dr. Channing Der
It is estimated that there are over one million people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States today, but that number is dwarfed by the over 33 million people worldwide who have the disease.
With the advent of Highly-Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART), HIV-infected individuals are living longer and are therefore at a higher risk for developing AIDS-related malignancies. Cancers in the context of HIV infection tend to be more aggressive and resist treatment with standard therapies.
Since 2008, UNC Lineberger, in conjunction with the 
Key areas of opportunity at UNC include:
- Potential for collaboration in the U.S., Malawi, China and Brazil to accelerate our understanding of the basic mechanisms underlying AIDS-associated cancers and the best treatments for these malignancies.
- In the U.S., UNC-Chapel Hill is a clinical site for the NCI-sponsored AIDS-associated malignancy consortium (AMC), which conducts clinical trials that enroll HIV-positive individuals with cancer.
- In Malawi, nearly 50% of the population is HIV-positive and 30-40% of the HIV positive population die of Kaposi's sarcoma. Dr. Dittmer is collaborating with several UNC-Chapel Hill investigators on cancer clinical trials in Malawi.
- In China, there is a UNC Infectious Disease-initiated HIV surveillance project in Xinjiang and Guangxi Provinces which records all incidences of cancer in the HIV-positive population.
- In Brazil, Drs. Dittmer and Damania collaborate with clinicians and faculty at the University of Sao Paolo, and Salvador, Bahia on clinical trials for Kaposi's sarcoma.
- The
- There are many cores and resources offered by both
- Membership in cooperative clinical trials groups that focus on diseases in HIV-infected individuals.
- Dr. Dittmer is Director of core laboratories for the
- Drs. Damania and Kristy Richards are co-PIs for the AMC site at UNC-Chapel Hill.
- Drs. Damania, Joe Eron and Charles Van Der Horst are members of the ACTG
- Drs. Jennifer Webster Cyriaque and Dittmer are members of the
- The
- UNC-Chapel Hill has also received a NCI supplement for Behavioral Strategies to Accrue and Retain Diverse Underserved Populations in HIV-related Malignancy Clinical Trials (Drs. Paul Godley, Anissa Vines, Kristy Richards and Dirk Dittmer are involved in this project).
