A new tick-borne bacterial infection can cause lymph node cancer – that’s what researchers at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg suspect.
They have started a multi-year research study with patients in western Sweden.
– The hope is that by treating the infection with antibiotics, it would be possible to slow down lymph node cancer or even completely cure it, says senior physician Christine Wennerås, who leads the study.
In a research study, researchers at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg are looking at a connection between a certain type of new tick mite and lymph node cancer. The suspicion is that the tick-borne bacterium neoehrlichia can cause the cancer.
– What we believe is that perhaps in some patients with certain forms of lymph node cancer it could contribute to the development of the cancer or perhaps cause it, says Christine Wennerås, professor and chief physician at Sahlgrenska University Hospital and who leads the study.
140 patients are participating in the study, which is expected to last for 3-4 years, says the chief physician.
– We want to understand what is the chicken and the egg. Because it’s hard to know. Is it the infection that first caused lymph node cancer or did you get the infection because you had lymph node cancer?
Cure cancer – with antibiotics
If it turns out that there is a link between the bacterial infection and lymph node cancer, it could be cured in a new way.
– The hope is that by treating infections with antibiotics, it would be possible to slow down lymph node cancer or even completely cure it, says Christine Wennerås.
These patients would then avoid chemotherapy.
– We’re not there yet, of course, but it’s clear that it would be fantastic.
Far from all ticks
The infection is transmitted via tick bites, but not all ticks carry the bacteria. It is estimated to be found in between five and 15 percent of ticks in Sweden.
– It’s not all fortresses. There are a few fortresses that carry this contagion. And of those who are bitten by ticks with the infectious agent, it is probably very few who get the infection, says Wennerås.