Infection may be linked to eye lymphoma

By Robert Cervin, | Health | 0 Comments

A form of lymphoma that affects the eye tissue has been linked to infection with Chlamydia.
It’s already known that bacteria in the Chlamydia group cause sexually-transmitted disease, respiratory tract infections and are maybe linked to cervical and lung cancer. Researchers at the San Raffaele Scientific Institute in Milan, Italy, have found the bacteria in tissue samples from patients with ocular adnexal lymphoma.

In 32 out of 40 with this condition, Chlamydia psittaci DNA was found. But the infection was found in none of the healthy controls, nor in tissue from those with a benign condition of the lymphatic system. Analysis of blood samples suggests that the infection persists in lymphoma patients.

What is more, seven of the patients received antibiotic treatment for Chlamydia psittaci . This removed the infection and in two of the four patients for which clinical information was available, the lymphoma regressed too. This looks like a promising new approach to the understanding and treatment of this form of lymphoma.