Epidemiologic similarities leading to etiologic hypotheses. NLM AIDSLINE Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1989. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

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Epidemiologic similarities leading to etiologic hypotheses.

Princess Takamatsu Symp. 1987;18:173-80. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/89139386
Newell GR; Spitz MR; Johnson DE; Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, University of Texas; M. D.Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute, Houston 77030.

Abstract: Analogy is a useful means of generating etiologic hypotheses which can be tested by epidemiologic, clinical, or laboratory studies. We describe how the use of analogy has furthered the understanding of three disease entities--Hodgkin's disease (HD), testicular cancer (TC), and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). HD is probably caused by a virus of low pathogenicity with clinical expression dependent on social factors. TC may have a viral etiology, although clinical disease may be triggered by other factors. AIDS is caused by a virus which may act as an initiator. AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) may be the result of exposure to a carcinogenic chemical acting as a promoter. In all three diseases, the clinical manifestation could be regarded as varying expressions of host response to a viral agent, modified by an array of socioeconomic and/or biologic cofactors.
Keywords: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/COMPLICATIONS Hodgkin's Disease/EPIDEMIOLOGY/ETIOLOGY Human Male Models, Theoretical Neoplasms/*EPIDEMIOLOGY/ETIOLOGY Testicular Neoplasms/EPIDEMIOLOGY/ETIOLOGY United States JOURNAL ARTICLE

KWDacquiredimmunodeficiencysyndrome/complicationshodgkin'sdisease/epidemiology/etiologyhumanmalemodels,theoreticalneoplasms/KWDepidemiology/etiologytesticularneoplasms/epidemiology/etiologyunitedstatesjournalarticle
890630
M8960611

Copyright © 1989 - National Library of Medicine. Reproduced under license with the National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD.

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