human cytomegalovirus and human herpesvirus-6 and wilms tumor: is there a link?

Background: identifying etiologic factors contributing to wilms tumor (wt) is necessary for its prevention and treatment. oncogenic viruses cause nearly 20% of all human cancers. although trials on preventing virus-caused cancers are complex and difficult, but they are not impossible to conduct. human cytomegalovirus (hcmv) and human herpes virus-6 (hhv6) can cause different types of cancers. objectives: the current study aimed to investigate whether hcmv and hhv6-dna are present in patients with wt. this is the first study of this kind in iran. methods: this study was performed on patients with kidney disorders who were referring to mofid pediatrics hospital, tehran (iran), during 2010-16. in total, 98 kidney samples (49 patients with wt and 49 normal kidneys (autopsy) and kidneys with benign noninfectious lesions) were investigated to identify hcmv and hhv6-dna. qualitative polymerase chain reaction (pcr) method and nested polymerase chain reaction (nested-pcr) technique were used to identify hcmv and hhv6, respectively. results: no significant difference was found between wt patients and controls concerning the hcmv or hhv6. conclusions: based on the findings, it can be concluded that there is no association between these viruses and wt.