Effect of local radiotherapy on the antibody levels against ebv‐induced early and capsid antigens (ea and vca) in patients with certain malignant tumours

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Abstract
Antibodies to tumour‐related and EBV‐associated intracellular antigens were studied in 14 cases of Burkitt's lymphoma, 50 of nasopharyngeal carcinoma, 10 of maxillary carcinoma and 95 cases of other tumours, all of whom received radiotherapy in Nairobi. For up to 1 month after radiotherapy the cases of Burkitt's lymphoma recorded an increase in antibodies to early antigens (EA) amounting to, on average, about one titre step (p<0.001). During the same interval there was a small but significant increase in antibodies to viral capsid antigen (VCA) (mean 0.6 titre step; p<0.001). The patients with nasopharyngeal and maxillary carcinoma, too, showed a small but statistically significant increase in antibodies to VCA 2‐6 months after radiotherapy (p<0.01 and 0.001, respectively), but no increase in antibodies to EA. On the contrary, in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients there was a significant decrease in antibodies to EA 2‐3 months after radiotherapy. In the group of other tumours there was no evidence of a change in antibodies to the intracellular antigens studied during any of the relevant intervals.