HIV-positive people are at higher risk than HIV-negative people for seven cancers not usually associated with HIV—anal cancer, Hodgkin’s lymphona, liver cancer, lung cancer, skin cancer, throat cancer and colon cancer—according to data presented from two large cohort studies at the recent International AIDS Society Conference in Sydney, Australia. Rates of prostate cancer and breast cancer were similar in both groups of patients.

The researchers blame prolonged exposure to cancerous viruses, immune suppression and genetic instability for the increased incidence, which mirrors data from other studies reported recently showing a greater risk of death from non-AIDS related cancer than AIDS-associated cancers.

The study reported at IAS also confirmed that the rates of  “classic” AIDS-related cancers such as Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS) and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) have dropped significantly since combination antiretroviral therapy went into widespread use.