03.05.2008 at 08:00
- Category:
Cancer and Oncology
LOS ANGELES -- U.S. medical scientists said a study of twins has produced a new hypothesis of why Hodgkin's lymphoma affects some people and not others.
University of Southern California researchers said the long-term twins study led them to potential links between Hodgkin's lymphoma and levels of the immune response protein interleukin-12.
"We found that lower levels of the protein interleukin-12, involved in fighting intracellular infections, increases susceptibility to young adult Hodgkin's lymphoma," said Dr. Wendy Cozen, an associate professor of preventive medicine at the university's Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.
Hodgkin's lymphoma is the most common type of cancer among young women and the second most common type among young men.
Cozen said her research provides the first clear evidence that individual differences in immune response might lead to the development of Hodgkin's lymphoma.
"We previously showed that there is a substantial genetic risk for adolescent and young adult Hodgkin's lymphoma, and that another immune response protein (interleukin-6) was related to risk," said Cozen. "We are pursuing the hypothesis that variations in genes control the secretion of these immune response proteins (cytokines) predicting Hodgkin lymphoma risk."
The study appears in the journal Blood.
Copyright 2008 by United Press International
