Current status of the epidemiologic evidence linking polychlorinated biphenyls and non-hodgkin lymphoma, and the role of immune dysregulation.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Although case-control studies conducted to date have largely affirmed the relationship between polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), occupational cohort studies of PCB-exposed workers have been generally interpreted as negative, thereby raising doubts about a potential causal association. A common theme of immune dysregulation unifies many of NHL's strongest risk factors, and several authors have posited that subclinical immune dysregulation may increase NHL risk by decreasing host resistance, reducing control of cellular proliferation and differentiation, and diminishing tumor surveillance mechanisms.

Objectives

The goals of this review were a) to evaluate the epidemiological research examining the association between PCB exposure and N

SUBMITTER: Kramer S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3440083 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature