Studies on Epstein-Barr virus in patients with primary sinonasal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Objective: To study the relationship between Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection and primary sinonasal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Methods: Using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method, 22 patients with primary sinonasal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), including 13 tumours of T cell type and 9 of B cell type, and mucosa from twenty cases of nasonasosinusitis were tested for the presence of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA.

Results: The results showed that 14 of 22 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (63.6%) and 4 of 20 nasonasosinusitis mucosa (20%) were EBV-DNAase gene positive (9 T cell type and 5 B cell type). The difference between non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and nasal mucosa was statistically significant (P < 0.005).

Conclusions: These results suggest that EBV is not only present in B lymphocyte lymphomas but also in T lymphocyte lymphomas.