Mortality rates for those diagnosed with HIV-related lymphoma have remained flat during the modern era of antiretrovirals (ARVs), HealthDay reports. Publishing their findings in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, researchers analyzed data from 476 HIV-positive American study participants with various forms of HIV-related lymphoma between 1996 and 2010. The lymphoma types included non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, Burkitt’s lymphoma and primary central nervous system lymphoma.

Lymphoma is the most frequent cause of cancer-related deaths among people with HIV.

Those diagnosed with lymphoma in more recent years were more likely to be male, Latino and gay, to have experienced an AIDS-related illness and to be on ARVs, with higher CD4 levels and better viral suppression.

Being diagnosed more recently did not translate into an improved chance at survival. Also, those who developed lymphoma while taking ARVs had a doubled mortality rate. Researchers theorize that this may be an effect of biologic differences in tumors that develop in the presence of ARVs as compared with their absence; more research is needed on this topic.

To read a release on the study, click here.

To read the HealthDay report, click here.