Kaposi’s sarcoma is a rare type of cancer caused by a virus, called HHV8, belonging to the herpes virus family. It can affect both the skin and internal organs.
Approximately 30-40% of patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection who are not treated with so-called antiretroviral drugs are likely to develop Kaposi’s sarcoma and/or lymphomas during the course of the disease. Kaposi’s sarcoma can also occur in people with weakened immune systems or a genetic predisposition.
In industrialized countries, it is 2000 times more common in people with HIV than in the general population. In the United States of America (USA) and Europe, the prevalence (prevalence) of Kaposi’s sarcoma, in men with AIDS, varies from 1% in hemophiliacs to 21% in homosexuals, if they are not treated with the now widely available HIV therapies.
