Survival and Prognostic Factors for AIDS and Non-AIDS Patients with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma in Bahia, Brazil: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Despite the benefits of HAART, HIV-infected patients are increasingly affected by different malignancies. We compared a 5-year-period survival time and prognostic factors for HIV-1-infected individuals diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) in a nested case-control study, with non-HIV-infected individuals in Salvador, Brazil. Survival time and prognostic factors were compared to HIV-negative patients. 31 cases (versus 63 controls) had a significantly more advanced NHL at diagnosis and lower mean CD4 count (26 cells/mm(3)) than controls. Mean overall survival (OS) was 35.8 versus 75.4 months, for cases and controls, respectively (P < 0.001), while mean event-free survival time (EFS) was 34.5 months for cases, versus 68.8 for controls (P = 0.002). Higher IPI, increased LDH levels, bone marrow infiltration, lower absolute lymphocyte counts (<1,000 cells/mm(3)), and type B symptoms were associated with a shorter survival time for cases. Although patients without poorer prognostic factors at baseline had an OS comparable to controls, the mean CD4 cell count for cases was similar for patients with favorable and nonfavorable response to therapy. Our findings suggest that HIV-1 infection is significantly associated with a shorter survival time for patients with NHL, independently of other predictive factors and of disease stage.