Abstract
Sera from 52 children with acute leukemia were examined for antibodies to herpes viruses (Epstein‐Barr) (EBV); herpes simplex (HSV); cytomegalovirus (CMV); varicella, and to some other common viruses (measles, rubella, mumps, adenovirus). The incidence of sera positive for herpes virus antibodies was lower among children 1–8 years of age with acute lymphoblastic leukemia — either untreated, in relapse or in remission — than among sera from age‐matched children without leukemia. This difference was particularly striking among children less than 4 years of age, CMV and varicefla antibodies were not found in the sera of children 1–8 years of age who had leukemia, and HSV antibodies were not found in sera from children 1–4 years of age who had leukemia. It was suggested that infection of malignant cells with a continuous release of viral antigens may cause a consumption of humoral antibodies to the herpes viruses.
The incidence of sera positive for antibodies to measles and rubella virus did not differ from the expected frequencies in these age groups. A somewhat lower than normal incidence of adenovirus and mumps virus antibodies was found in sera from children with leukemia, 1–4 and 4–15 years of age respectively. This finding was dificult to interpret due to the stronger periodic variation of mumps and adenovirus infections in the community.