# Research Project 1: Epidemiology of Kaposi's Sarcoma and Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus

> **NIH NIH U54** · UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA LINCOLN · 2021 · $1,879

## Abstract

ABSTRACT 
Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) remains a highly prevalent malignancy in sub-Saharan Africa. Anti-retroviral therapy 
(ART) and associated immune reconstitution has been correlated with a dramatic decline in the prevalence of 
KS in the U.S. HIV-infected population, but the impact of ART on KS in sub-Saharan Africa is less clear. In 
Zambia, even with the scale up of ART, KS remains the second most common cancer among adult men. For 
women, it is the third most common. Early identification of KS and a pipeline to definitive diagnosis and 
appropriate treatments that are well-tolerated and minimize side-effects is an essential strategy that can be 
implemented in Zambia and will improve outcomes for KS patients. The overall goals of this application are to 
implement a strategy in Zambia to identify and diagnose KS early and couple diagnosis to prospective 
investigations of the underlying cause(s) of ART treatment successes and failures. The project team 
hypothesizes that factors such as HIV and KSHV viral load, genetics, and soluble proteins, or immunological 
parameters that preexist the administration of ART to KS patients impact the outcome of early KS therapy with 
ART alone. The identification of these risk factors can serve as prognostic markers for directing KS treatment 
decisions (whom to treat with ART alone, and whom with ART/chemo), and will enhance understanding of 
early KS disease pathogenesis. These activities will result in improved early identification and definitive 
diagnosis of a major AIDS-associated malignancy. These improvements, coupled with the risk factor and 
prognostic biomarker identification, will, in turn, improve the prognosis of and treatment of HIV+ KS patients in 
Zambia and throughout sub-Saharan Africa. This will ultimately inform efforts to better understand KS 
pathogenesis and develop novel interventional strategies.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10242678
- **Project number:** 5U54CA221204-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA LINCOLN
- **Principal Investigator:** John T. West
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $1,879
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-15 → 2021-10-15

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10242678

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10242678, Research Project 1: Epidemiology of Kaposi's Sarcoma and Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus (5U54CA221204-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10242678. Licensed CC0.

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