ABSTRACT
For over 30 years, it has been known that DNA viruses such as SV40 virus and RNA viruses such as the retrovirus, Rous sarcoma virus, are capable of transforming those cells they infect. These viruses are associated primarily with animals and are rarely implicated in human disease, although a few examples are known (Table 2.1). The viruses are particularly important because they have taught us a great deal about the molecular basis for transformation and have led to the identification of cellular oncogenes. Viruses associated with human cancers
Virus
Associated tumors
DNA viruses
Epstein–Barr
Burkitt’s lymphoma
Nasopharyngeal cancer
Hepatitis B
Liver cancer
Papilloma virus
Benign warts
Cervical cancer
RNA viruses
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1)
Kaposi’s sarcoma
Human T-cell leukemia virus Type I (HTLV-1)
Adult T-cell leukemia
HTLV-2
Hairy cell leukemia
HTLV-5
Cutaneous T-cell leukemia
