Zwane Nompumelelo Benedicta, Mohangi Govindrau Udaibhan, Shangase Sindisiwe Londiwe

Department of Oral Medicine and Periodontology, School of Oral Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.

Department of Oral Medicine and Periodontology, School of Oral Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.

Oral Medicine and Periodontology, School of Oral Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality among HIV infected individuals, but there is not much information in South Africa regarding Head and Neck AIDS-defining cancers (ADCs).

Aim: To profile head and neck cancers (HNC) in HIV-positive patients in the Department of Oral Pathology, Wits Oral Health Centre over a five-year period.

Methods and data analysis: A records-based retrospective descriptive study with an analytic component. Archived records (2009 to 2013) in the Department of  Oral Pathology were reviewed. HIV serology results, CD4+T-cell counts and the viral load were verified from National Health Laboratory Service archived records. IBM SPSS 23.0 was used for data analysis.

Results: 1605 cases of HNC were recorded, with 389 (24.2%) confirmed HIV-positive (mean age of 38 ± 11.0 years), of whom 52.3% were females. The likelihood of patients with HIV infection to be diagnosed with Kaposi Sarcoma (KS) and Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (NHL) was significantly greater at 35.7% and 34.2% respectively with a p value < 0.05, compared with any other cancer type.

Conclusion: KS and NHL, both ADCs, were the two most common HNCs diagnosed among HIV-positive patients. Third was Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), a Non- AIDS Defining Cancer (NADC).