Cancer in the HIV/AIDS Population in Iowa, 1991-2015

As survival rates for individuals with HIV/AIDS diagnoses increase, cancer is becoming a more prevalent disease in this population. Data regarding the concurrent diagnoses of HIV/AIDS and cancer has not previously been examined and analyzed in the state of Iowa.

The Iowa Cancer Registry and Iowa Department of Public Health's HIV/AIDS surveillance databases were linked, and matches were identified. Characteristics of Iowans with HIV/AIDS later diagnosed with cancer between 1991 and 2015 were compared to Iowans without HIV/AIDS using proportional incidence ratios (PIRs).

490 patients met inclusion criteria; 91% had AIDS and 9% had HIV only. Compared to individuals without HIV/AIDS, significantly higher PIRs for cancer were found in younger persons, males, African Americans, metropolitan (metro) residents, and Iowans with Medicaid or the uninsured. Specifically, PIRs associated with the following cancers were higher in the population with HIV/AIDS: Kaposi sarcoma, non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHLs), and squamous cell neoplasms of the anus. When stratified by AIDS-defining cancers and non-AIDS-defining cancers, the main differences were individuals with AIDS-defining cancers had elevated PIRs among those diagnosed between 1991-1998 and had Kaposi sarcoma or Burkitt lymphoma, while those with non-AIDS-defining cancers were diagnosed between 2007-2015 and were diagnosed with anal, male or female genital, lymphoma other than NHL, liver, lung, or other squamous cell neoplasm cancers. When comparing nonmetropolitan (nonmetro) vs metro Iowans with HIV/AIDS, PIRs for nonmetro patients were elevated in those diagnosed with cancer between 50-59 years old, whites, and individuals diagnosed with squamous cell neoplasms.

Our results indicate Iowans with HIV/AIDS have higher proportions of certain types of cancers compared to the general population and provide baseline information for future initiatives aimed at preventing or detecting cancer among those living with HIV/AIDS.