In the largest cohort study of the rare HHV8-positive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, researchers found that age ≥60 years, higher Charlson-Deyo score, HIV-positive status, and absence of systemic treatment were independent predictors of poor survival outcomes.
Gaelle Haddad, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic in Weston, Florida, and colleagues presented the findings at the 2026 ASCO Annual Meeting.
HHV8+ DLBCL is a rare, aggressive subtype of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that has limited survival outcomes data due to the small patient population.
Researchers used the National Cancer Database (2010-2023) to identify 262 US patients with HHV8+ DLBCL (mean age, 52.6 years), most of whom were younger than 60 years (65.6%), male (76.7%), and White (66.0%).
The most common primary disease site was nodal (78.6%), with 21.4% having extranodal involvement. About a fifth of the cohort (19.2%) had HIV, and 63.3% had a Charlson-Deyo score of zero, indicating no comorbidities.
Most patients (84.6%) received systemic therapy, with 62.2% receiving chemotherapy and 43.1% receiving immunotherapy.
Median overall survival (OS) was 133 months, including survival rates:
• 68.2% at one year
• 63.1% at three years
• 59.9% at five years
The following factors were independently associated with worse OS:
• Age ≥60 years (hazard ratio [HR], 2.20; P=0.0004)
• Higher Charlson-Deyo score (HR, 1.67; P=0.0090)
• HIV-positive status (HR, 2.56; P=0.0026)
• Absence of systemic treatment (HR, 2.16; P=0.0016)
Additional studies are needed to assess the pathogenesis of this cancer, as well as identify optimal treatment options, according to the authors..
Reference
Haddad G, Villa-Celi C, Liang H, Fu CL, Galili Y, Chaulagain CP. Age and HIV status as survival predictors in HHV8-positive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: the largest population-based analysis to date. Abstract #7084. Presented at the 2026 ASCO Annual Meeting; May 29-June 2, 2026; Chicago.
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