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Abstract

Title: Personal and family history of autoimmune conditions and the risk of Hodgkin lymphoma.
Author: Goldin LR, Landgren O, Engels EA, Pfeiffer RM
Journal: Genet Epidemiol 29(3):61
Year: 2005
Month: November

Abstract: Abnormalities of the immune system (immunosuppression and autoimmunity) are known risk factors for developing lymphoma. Several studies have found that individuals with systemic autoimmune (AI) diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are at increased risk for developing non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) has a strong familial component and may also be associated with autoimmunity. We tested whether personal and/or family history of autoimmune diseases is associated with an increased risk of HL using population-based linked registry data in Sweden and Denmark. Thirty-five separate autoimmune conditions in 7,476 HL cases, 18,573 matched controls, and 86,163 first degree relatives of cases and controls were scored from hospital discharge diagnoses. First, we assessed the association of each condition with HL in separate logistic regression models. We then also fit a hierarchical regression model that incorporated information on the 35 autoimmune conditions by classifying them into 3 broad categories (those with detectable autoantibodies with/without sytemic involvement, and those without detectable autoantibodies) that were assumed to share overall group mean effects. Variations within an AI category were modeled by random effects. For personal history of systemic AI conditions, strong associations were found for RA, collagenosis, Sjogren-s syndrome, and SLE and for immune thrombocytopenic purpura and sarcoidosis using the conventional and hierarchical models. Family history of AI conditions was generally not associated with risk for HL but there was a marginally elevated risk for family history of sarcoidosis and ulcerative colitis. We conclude that certain defined autoimmune conditions are important risk factors for HL but genetic factors predisposing to HL are likely to be different from those predisposing to autoimmunity.