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Diagnosis and Treatment of Kaposi Sarcoma

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Abstract

Kaposi sarcoma (KS) is the most common neoplasm of people living with HIV today. In Sub-Saharan Africa, KS is among the most common cancers in men, overall. Not only HIV-positive individuals present with KS; any immune compromised person infected with KS-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) or human herpesvirus 8 is at risk: the elderly, children in KSHV-endemic areas, and transplant recipients. KS diagnosis is based on detection of the viral protein latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) in the biopsy, but not all cases of KS are the same or will respond to the same therapy. Standard KS therapy has not changed in 20 years, but newer modalities are on the horizon and will be discussed.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank our colleagues B. Damania, Marcia Sanders, Anthony Eason for critical reading and insightful discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Health Laboratory Service, Division of Anatomical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Tygerberg Hospital, Stellenbosch University, PO Box 241, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa

    Johann W. Schneider

  2. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB#7295, 450 West Dr., Chapel Hill, NC, 27517, USA

    Dirk P. Dittmer

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  1. Johann W. Schneider
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Correspondence to Johann W. Schneider or Dirk P. Dittmer.

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Funding

This work is supported by Public Health Service (PHS) Grants DE018304 and CA190152 to DPD and CA192744 to JWS and DPD. The authors are members of the AIDS Malignancy Consortium (AMC), which is supported by PHS Grant CA121947, and JWS is a member of the AIDS Cancer Specimen Resource (ACSR), which is supported by PHS Grant CA181255.

Conflict of interest

DPD has received reagents from and was in a consulting agreement related to KS with Delenex AG and Navidea Inc. This did not influence the opinions expressed in this review. JWS has no conflicts of interest to declare.

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Schneider, J.W., Dittmer, D.P. Diagnosis and Treatment of Kaposi Sarcoma. Am J Clin Dermatol 18, 529–539 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40257-017-0270-4

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