VCU Massey Cancer Center

Causes and risk factors

What are the risk factors for Hodgkin’s disease?

Suggested risk factors for Hodgkin’s disease include the following:

• Infection with infectious mononucleosis.
• Age – Hodgkin’s disease occurs most often in people between ages 15 and 34, and in people over the age of 55.
• Gender – Hodgkin’s disease is more common in men than in women.
• Family history – brothers and sisters of those with Hodgkin’s disease have a higher-than-average chance of developing this disease.
• Viruses – Epstein-Barr virus may be associated with an increased risk of Hodgkin’s disease.
• Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).
• Organ transplantation.