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Risk factors
By Mayo Clinic staffThe following are risk factors for Hodgkin's lymphoma:
- Age. People between the ages of 15 and 40, as well as those older than 55, are most at risk of Hodgkin's lymphoma.
- Family history. Anyone with a brother or a sister who has the disease faces an increased risk of developing Hodgkin's lymphoma, though this may be due to similar environmental exposures rather than genetic factors.
- Sex. Males are slightly more likely to develop Hodgkin's lymphoma.
- Past Epstein-Barr infection. People who have had illnesses caused by the Epstein-Barr virus, such as infectious mononucleosis, are more likely to develop Hodgkin's lymphoma than are people who haven't had these Epstein-Barr infections.
- Compromised immune system. Having a compromised immune system, such as from HIV/AIDS or from having an organ transplant requiring medications to suppress your immune response, also appears to put you at a greater risk of Hodgkin's lymphoma.
- Geography. Hodgkin's lymphoma is most prevalent in the United States, Canada and northern Europe. It's least common in Asian countries.
- Socioeconomic status. Hodgkin's lymphoma is more common in people with higher socioeconomic background.
References
- What you need to know about Hodgkin lymphoma. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/hodgkin/allpages. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Overview: Hodgkin disease. American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_3x.asp?dt=84. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Gottschalk SM, et al. Overview of Hodgkin lymphoma in children and adolescents. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Mauch PM. Clinical presentation and patterns of disease distribution on Hodgkin lymphoma in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Horwitz S, et al. Treatment of advanced stage (stage III-IV) Hodgkin lymphoma. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Bartlett, NL. Modern treatment of Hodgkin lymphoma. Current Opinion in Hematology. 2008;15:408.
- General information about adult Hodgkin lymphoma. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/adulthodgkins/Patient. Accessed June 7, 2009.
- Ng AK, et al. Late effects of Hodgkin's disease and its treatment. The Cancer Journal. 2009;15:164.
- Complementary and alternative therapies. American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ETO/ETO_5.asp?sitearea=ETO. Accessed June 7, 2009.
- Stages of adult Hodgkin lymphoma. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/adulthodgkins/Patient/page2. Accessed June 7, 2009.
- Ansell SM (expert opinion.) Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. June 12, 2009.
