ArticleJournal of the National Cancer Institute2015
Risk of merkel cell carcinoma after solid organ transplantation.
Article in Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 80 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
80 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 209 citations in OpenAlex.
- Azathioprine Increases the Risk of Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer Among Organ Transplant Recipients; an Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Cancer reports (Hoboken, N.J.) · 2026Pooled it
- Fraction of Cancer Attributable to Carcinogenic Drugs in Korea from 2015 to 2030.Cancer research and treatment · 2025Pooled it
- Merkel-cell carcinoma: ESMO-EURACAN Clinical Practice Guideline for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up.ESMO open · 2024Guideline
- Group I pharmaceuticals of IARC and associated cancer risks: systematic review and meta-analysis.Scientific reports · 2024Pooled it
- Systematic Review of Calcineurin Inhibitors and Incidence of Skin Malignancies after Kidney Transplantation in Adult Patients: A Study of 309,551 Cases.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2023Pooled it
- Skin Cancer in People of Color: A Systematic Review.American journal of clinical dermatology · 2022Pooled it
- Three-year survival, correlates and salvage therapies in patients receiving first-line pembrolizumab for advanced Merkel cell carcinoma.Journal for immunotherapy of cancer · 2021Trial
- Immunosuppression Outweighs Clinical AEIOU Heuristics in Predicting Disease Progression of Merkel Cell Carcinoma: A Retrospective Cohort Study.Acta dermato-venereologica · 2026Article
- The Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor-Macrophage Axis in Merkel Cell Carcinoma: Evidence, Limitations, and Therapeutic Hypotheses.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- IARC Group 1 Pharmaceuticals and Associated Cancer Risks: A Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study in Korea.Cancer research and treatment · 2026Article
- Merkel cell carcinoma of the parotid gland: a rare case report and literature review.International journal of surgery case reports · 2025Article
- Merkel cell carcinoma in solid organ transplant recipients: prognosis and response to immunotherapy.The British journal of dermatology · 2025Article
- Merkel cell carcinoma originating in the gluteal region.JAAD case reports · 2025Article
- Treatment of Merkel cell carcinoma in organ transplant recipients-A systematic review.JAAD international · 2025Review
- Coexistence of neuroendocrine carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma of the skin after kidney transplantation: a case report.Archives of craniofacial surgery · 2025Article
- Merkel Cell Carcinoma and Immunosuppression, UV Radiation, and Merkel Cell Polyomavirus.JAMA dermatology · 2025Article
- Merkel Cell Carcinoma: Integrating Epidemiology, Immunology, and Therapeutic Updates.American journal of clinical dermatology · 2024Review
- Mycophenolate mofetil inhibits Merkel cell carcinoma growth.The British journal of dermatology · 2024Article
- Incidence of malignancies after lung transplantation and their effect on the outcome. 26 years' experience.Heliyon · 2023Article
- The Evolving Treatment Landscape of Merkel Cell Carcinoma.Current treatment options in oncology · 2023Review
20 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
- Commented on by
Authors and funding
10 authors at 8 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundSolid organ transplant recipients have elevated risks of virus-related cancers, in part because of long-term immunosuppression. Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is an aggressive skin cancer recently found to have a viral origin, but little is known regarding the occurrence of MCC after transplant.
methodsWe linked the US Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients with data from 15 population-based cancer registries to ascertain MCC occurrence among 189498 solid organ transplant recipients from 1987 to 2009. Risks for MCC following transplantation were compared with the general population using standardized incidence ratios, and Poisson regression was used to compare incidence rates according to key patient and transplant characteristics. All statistical tests were two-sided.
resultsAfter solid organ transplantation, overall risk of MCC was increased 23.8-fold (95% confidence interval = 19.6 to 28.7, n = 110). Adjusted risks were highest among older recipients, increased with time since transplantation, and varied by organ type (all P ≤ .007). Azathioprine, cyclosporine, and mTOR inhibitors given for maintenance immunosuppression increased risk, and non-Hispanic white recipients on cyclosporine and azathioprine experienced increasing MCC risk with lower latitude of residence (ie, higher ultraviolet radiation exposure, P = .012).
conclusionsMCC risk is sharply elevated after solid organ transplant, likely resulting from long-term immunosuppression. Immunosuppressive medications may act synergistically with ultraviolet radiation to increase risk.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.