ggomani | UNC Project-Malawi Cancer

Skip to main content

Institute for Global Health & Infectious Diseases

Diagnosis and Management of Kaposi Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Inflammatory Cytokine Syndrome in Resource-Constrained Settings: A Case Report and an Adapted Case Definition

December 2024 Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpes virus (KSHV), also known as human herpes virus 8 (HHV-8), is the primary etiologic cause of Kaposi sarcoma (KS) and KSHV Inflammatory Cytokine Syndrome (KICS). Patients with KICS demonstrate symptoms of systemic inflammation, high KSHV viral load, elevation of inflammatory markers, and increased mortality. Management...

Tumor-Associated Edema in Children with Kaposi Sarcoma: 14 Years’ Experience at Kamuzu Central Hospital, Lilongwe, Malawi.

November 2024 Background/Objectives: Kaposi sarcoma (KS) is a common lymphatic endothelial cancer among children with and without HIV in central and eastern Africa. Despite its clinical heterogeneity, its various clinical phenotypes are often grouped together in staging and treatment algorithms. Patients with KS tumor-associated edema, referring to hard, non-pitting lesions...

Aetiology, susceptibility and outcomes of fever in patients receiving chemotherapy in Malawi: a prospective study

October 2024 Objectives: To evaluate causes of fever, including resistance patterns, in patients undergoing cancer treatment in Malawi. Methods: In this prospective cohort study, enrolled patients undergoing chemotherapy at Kamuzu Central Hospital in Lilongwe, Malawi were given a thermometer. If a temperature of ≥38°C was recorded, they were instructed to...

Transcriptome profiling of pediatric extracranial solid tumors and lymphomas enables rapid low-cost diagnostic classification

August 2024 Approximately 80% of pediatric tumors occur in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), where diagnostic tools essential for treatment decisions are often unavailable or incomplete. Development of cost-effective molecular diagnostics will help bridge the cancer diagnostic gap and ultimately improve pediatric cancer outcomes in LMIC settings. We investigated the...

HIV and prior exposure to antiretroviral therapy alter tumour composition and tumour: T-cell associations in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

May 2024 Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common subtype of lymphoma worldwide, accounting for up to 40% of new non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL) globally. People living with HIV are up to 17 times more likely to develop NHL, and as such, DLBCL is the leading cause of cancer...

Letters to the Editor Low Rates of Side Effects in Paclitaxel Chemotherapy for Kaposi Sarcoma and Feasibility of Treatment in Outpatient ART Clinic Settings in Malawi.

May 2024 Kaposi sarcoma (KS), caused by human herpes virus 8,1 is the most common cancer in HIV-infected individuals. Immunosuppression is an important risk factor of KS development and before antiretroviral therapy (ART) treatment became widely available in a large proportion of people living with HIV developed KS.2 In 2020,...

HIV infection and ART exposure affect tumor TCR repertoire of diffuse large B cell lymphoma

May 2024 The most common subtype of lymphoma globally, diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL), is a leading cause of cancer death in people with HIV. The restructuring of the T cell compartment because of HIV infection and antiretroviral therapy (ART) may have implications for modern treatment selection, but current...

Comparison of the ScreenFire and Xpert HPV assays for the detection of human papillomavirus and cervical precancer among women living with HIV in Malawi

May 2024 Background: The World Health Organization recommends human papillomavirus (HPV) testing for primary cervical cancer screening, including among women living with HIV (WLWH). Low-and-middle-income countries account for 85% of the cervical cancer burden globally, yet have limited access to HPV-based screening, largely due to cost. This study aims to...

. Safety, efficacy, and affordability of ABVD for Hodgkin lymphoma in Malawi: a prospective cohort study

March 2024 Background: ABVD (doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dexamethasone) is a proven, curative regimen for Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). Prospective data describing HL treatment in sub-Saharan Africa are limited. We aimed to fill this knowledge gap, using data from Malawi. Methods: We report a prospective observational cohort of HL (aged ≥...

Addressing the Intersectional Stigma of Kaposi Sarcoma and HIV: A Call to Action

February 2024 Epidemic Kaposi sarcoma (KS), also called AIDS-related KS, is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in people living with HIV (PLWH). In Malawi, KS is the leading cancer overall, accounting for 34% of all malignancies recorded in the national registry.1 Although the incidence of KS has substantially...