Epstein–Barr Virus and Rheumatoid Arthritis in Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy in Al-Najaf Province, Iraq

Background: Some studies suggested a link between Epstein–Barr Virus (EBV) and rheumatoid arthritis, although the exact mechanism of this is not yet established. Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy aremore immunocompromised. Hence this study has demonstrated the role of EBV in rheumatoid arthritis in these patients.Objective: To study the relationship between Epstein–Bar viral infection and rheumatoid arthritis in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from September 1, 2021 to March 1, 2022. The study participants included 200 cancer patients who reported to the Middle Euphrates Cancer Center in Al Najaf for chemotherapy treatment. Cancer patients were diagnosed with cases of rheumatoid arthritis, according to rheumatologist physicians and serological tests. Five ml of blood was collected from every cancer patient. Each sample was screened for the presence of anti-EBV antibodies. The chi-square test was used to test the significance of the relationship between qualitative variables. A p value of less than or equal to 0.05 indicated a statistically significant difference.Results: Two hundred cancer patients were included in this study. Their age ranged from 17 to 73 years. Nearly half of them (47.5%) aged 30–50 years. Most of them were females (67.0%) and 60.5% of the participants lived in urban areas. More than one-third of participants (40.0%) had rheumatoid arthritis. More than half of them (53.0%) were EBV-positive. Statistical analysis showed a highly significant association between EBV and rheumatoid arthritis (p < 0.00001). No significant differences (p > 0.05) were found between different age groups regarding anti-EBV-IgM and IgG antibodies in rheumatoid and non-rheumatoid patients. On the other hand, PCR testing showed a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001) in non-rheumatoid patients and no significant difference in rheumatoid patients.Conclusion: A significant association was detected between EBV and rheumatoid arthritis in cancer patients treated by chemotherapy and this association was not related to EBV antibody levels. How to cite this article:Al-Nafakh RT, Aldawmy FAAK, Mubark HA, Al- Fadhul SAL, Abdulrazzaq HI, Almealawy YF, Atyaa FN, Yasir NJ, Yasir SJ. Epstein–Barr Virus and Rheumatoid Arthritis in Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy in Al-Najaf Province, Iraq. J Commun Dis. 2023;55(4):119-125. DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/0019.5138.202364