ABSTRACT

Background and Aim

Human toxoplasmosis is caused by the ubiquitous intracellular apicomplexan pathogen, Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii). It has been acclaimed as the most successful parasite ever, infecting up to one-third of the global population. The objective of this study was to evaluate the seroprevalence of T. gondii in individuals with different types of malignancies in comparison to a control group of healthy individuals.

Patients and Methods

A case-control study was conducted from April 2022 to December 2022. Sera of 50 patients with different cancer types and 50 healthy individuals were analyzed for Toxoplasma gondii IgG and IgM using ELISA.

Results

A total of 100 individuals were evaluated, and it was found that 67 of them (67%) tested positive for Toxoplasma IgG antibodies. Seroprevalence was significantly higher (p=0.016) in cancer patients (64%) than in controls. Moreover, 15% were positive for Toxoplasma IgM. Notably, the prevalence was found to be greater among cancer patients compared to the control group, with (18% vs 12%), respectively. Patients with hematological malignancies exhibited a slightly greater rate of IgG seropositivity compared to those with solid organ tumors (85% and 77% respectively). A similar trend of Toxoplasma IgM, with a prevalence of 25% in hematological malignancies and 9.1% in solid organ tumors.

Conclusion

T. gondii infection was shown to be substantially more common in cancer patients. Seropositive patients are at a high risk for reactivation, whereas seronegative patients are at risk for infection. Our research shows that toxoplasmosis screening must be promoted in these settings.