REVIEW article
Front. Oncol.
Sec. Hematologic Malignancies
Epstein-Barr Virus Associated Lymphoma: Biology, Treatment and Future Prospective
Provisionally accepted
- 1Department of Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
- 2Department of Medical Oncology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
- 3Department of Pathology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
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Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a ubiquitous human gamma-herpesvirus causally linked to a diverse spectrum of lymphoid malignancies. This review provides a comprehensive overview of EBV-associated lymphomas, encompassing their global epidemiology, the intricate pathogenesis driven by viral latency proteins and complex host immune interactions, and the varied clinical presentations of distinct subtypes. We delve into the detailed pathological features, molecular characteristics, and diagnostic strategies for classic Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL), Burkitt lymphoma (BL), diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD), and extra-nodal NK/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type (ENKTL). Current subtype-specific treatment paradigms are critically evaluated, along with a thorough exploration of emerging therapeutic avenues, including novel immunotherapeutic approaches such as immune checkpoint inhibitors, adoptive cell therapies like EBV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes and chimeric antigen receptor T-cells (CAR-T), and targeted molecular therapies. Finally, we highlight the persistent challenges, critical knowledge gaps, and promising future prospects, including preventative and therapeutic vaccine strategies, aimed at optimizing diagnostic precision and improving long-term outcomes for patients afflicted with these heterogeneous and often aggressive diseases.
Keywords: Epstein-Barr virus, Lymphoid malignancies, Lymphoma, immune checkpoint inhibitors, car-t
Received: 31 Jul 2025; Accepted: 03 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Datta, Gogia and Mallick. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Ajay Gogia, ajaygogia@gmail.com
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