# Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in cancer

Source: https://onco.cc/terms/ebv-term/  
OnCo record `ebv-term` (Term). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

The common glandular-fever virus, carried lifelong by most adults, which in a minority of people drives nasopharyngeal cancer, some stomach cancers and several lymphomas.

## Summary

EBV infects B cells and epithelium; it causes nearly all nasopharyngeal carcinoma (endemic in southern China), about 9% of gastric cancers (a TCGA subtype with high PD-L1 and immunotherapy sensitivity), Burkitt lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma in part, post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease and NK/T-cell lymphoma. Plasma EBV DNA screens for and monitors nasopharyngeal cancer; EBV-specific T cells (tabelecleucel) treat post-transplant lymphoma; EBV vaccines are in early trials. EBER in situ hybridisation is the tissue test.

## Fields

- Kind: Term
- Last checked: 2026-09-09
- Also known as: EBV; Epstein-Barr; Epstein–Barr virus; EBV-positive; EBV-associated; EBV-driven; EBV DNA; EBER

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epstein%E2%80%93Barr_virus
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epstein%E2%80%93Barr_virus

## Connected records

- terms: [FISH / ISH (in situ hybridisation)](https://onco.cc/terms/fish/), [Head and neck subsites (oral cavity, oropharynx, larynx)](https://onco.cc/terms/head-neck-subsites/), [HHV-8 (KSHV) status and LANA-1 immunohistochemistry](https://onco.cc/terms/hhv8-kshv/), [HPV status (HPV-positive / HPV-negative)](https://onco.cc/terms/hpv-status/), [HTLV-1 (human T-lymphotropic virus type 1)](https://onco.cc/terms/lymphoma-htlv-1/), [Plasma EBV DNA](https://onco.cc/terms/plasma-ebv-dna/)
- cancers: [Burkitt lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/burkitt-lymphoma/), [Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/dlbcl/), [EBV-positive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/ebv-positive-dlbcl/), [Extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/extranodal-nk-t-cell-lymphoma/), [Gastric & gastro-oesophageal junction cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/gastric/), [Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/head-and-neck/), [HIV-associated (AIDS-related) lymphomas](https://onco.cc/cancers/hiv-associated-lymphoma/), [Hodgkin lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/hodgkin-lymphoma/), [Locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (stage III to IVA)](https://onco.cc/cancers/locoregionally-advanced-nasopharyngeal-carcinoma/), [Monomorphic epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/monomorphic-epitheliotropic-intestinal-t-cell-lymphoma/), [Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (all types)](https://onco.cc/cancers/non-hodgkin-lymphoma/), [Plasmablastic lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/plasmablastic-lymphoma/), [Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD)](https://onco.cc/cancers/post-transplant-lymphoproliferative-disorder/), [Primary effusion lymphoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/primary-effusion-lymphoma/), [Recurrent and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/recurrent-metastatic-nasopharyngeal-carcinoma/)
- fronts: [Diagnostics & Biomarkers](https://onco.cc/fronts/diagnostics/)

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