Mortality and Associated Risk Factors Among People Living With HIV With Kaposi Sarcoma: A5263/AMC066 and A5264/AMC067.

Background: AIDS-related Kaposi sarcoma (AIDS-KS) remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among people living with HIV in Africa. Mortality among people with AIDS-KS on antiretroviral therapy remains high compared with people on antiretroviral therapy who do not have AIDS-KS.

Setting: People living with HIV with Kaposi sarcoma (KS) who participated in 2 randomized trials (A5263/AMC066 [advanced stage] and A5264/AMC067 [mild-to-moderate stage]) conducted by AIDS Clinical Trials Group/AIDS Malignancy Consortium in low- and middle-income countries.

Survival Following Diagnosis of HIV-Associated Kaposi Sarcoma Among Adults in East Africa in the "Treat-All" Era.

Background: Despite widespread access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) in the "Treat All" era, HIV-associated Kaposi sarcoma (KS) remains among the most common malignancies in sub-Saharan Africa. Survival after KS diagnosis has historically been poor in Africa, but knowledge whether survival has changed at the population level in the contemporary era has been limited by lack of community-representative surveillance and monitoring systems.

Methods: We identified all adult persons living with HIV (PLWH) with a new diagnosis of KS made between 2016 and 2019 during outpatient or inpatient care at prototypical primary care-providing medical facilities in Kenya and Uganda using rapid case ascertainment.

Impact of a multicomponent navigation strategy on stigma among people living with HIV and Kaposi's sarcoma in Kenya: a qualitative analysis.

Persons with HIV-associated Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) experience three co-existing stigmatizing health conditions: skin disease, HIV, and cancer, which contribute to a complex experience of stigmatization and to delays in diagnosis and treatment. Despite the importance of stigma among these patients, there are few proven stigma-reduction strategies for HIV-associated malignancies. Using qualitative methods, we explore how people with HIV-associated KS in western Kenya between August 2022 and 2023 describe changes in their stigma experience after participation in a multicomponent navigation strategy, which included 1) physical navigation and care coordination, 2) video-based education with motivational survivor stories, 3) travel stipend, 4) health insurance enrollment assistance, 5) health insurance stipend, and 6) peer mentorship.

Breast Health Awareness: Understanding Health-Seeking Behavior in Western Kenya.

Introduction: In Kenya, patients with breast cancer predominantly present with late-stage disease and experience poor outcomes. To promote early-stage diagnosis, we implemented the Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare (AMPATH) Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Program (ABCCCP) in Western Kenya.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess differences between patients presenting to health facilities and health fairs.

Risk of Bleeding Associated With Outpatient Use of Rivaroxaban in VTE Management at a National Referral Hospital in Western Kenya.

There is limited data on the bleeding safety profile of direct oral anticoagulants, such as rivaroxaban, in low- and middle-income country settings like Kenya. In this prospective observational study, patients newly started on rivaroxaban or switching to rivaroxaban from warfarin for the management of venous thromboembolism (VTE) within the national referral hospital in western Kenya were assessed to determine the frequency of bleeding during treatment. Bleeding events were assessed at the 1- and 3-month visits, as well as at the end of follow-up.

Telehospice for Cancer Patients Discharged from a Tertiary Care Hospital in Western Kenya.

Context: Worldwide, most patients lack access to hospice services.

Objectives: Assess the feasibility of telephone monitoring (Telehospice) in providing symptom management for patients discharged from a tertiary care hospital in Western Kenya.

Methods: Inclusion criteria included adults with cancer no longer eligible for chemo-radiation and receiving opioid therapy.

Evaluation of four chemotherapy regimens for treatment of advanced AIDS-associated Kaposi sarcoma in Kenya: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

Background: The most effective treatment for advanced AIDS-associated Kaposi sarcoma is paclitaxel or pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD); neither is routinely used in sub-Saharan Africa due to limited availability and high cost. We examined the clinical impact, costs, and cost-effectiveness of paclitaxel or PLD in Kenya, compared with etoposide or bleomycin-vincristine.

Methods: In this study, we use the Cost-Effectiveness of Preventing AIDS Complications (CEPAC)-International Model to project clinical outcomes and costs among people living with HIV and advanced Kaposi sarcoma on antiretroviral therapy.

Telling the story of intersectional stigma in HIV-associated Kaposi's sarcoma in western Kenya: a convergent mixed-methods approach.

Introduction: The experience of stigma can be multifaceted for people with HIV and cancer. Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), one of the most common HIV-associated cancers in sub-Saharan Africa, often presents with visible skin lesions that may put people at risk for stigmatization. In this way, HIV-associated KS is unique, as people with KS can experience stigma associated with HIV, cancer, and skin disease simultaneously.

Barriers and facilitators to chemotherapy initiation and adherence for patients with HIV-associated Kaposi's sarcoma in Kenya: a qualitative study.

Background: Kaposi sarcoma is one of the most prevalent HIV-associated malignancies in sub-Saharan Africa and is often diagnosed at advanced stage of disease. Only 50% of KS patients who qualify for chemotherapy receive it and adherence is sub-optimal.

Methods: 57 patients > 18 years with newly diagnosed KS within the AMPATH clinic network in Western Kenya were purposively selected to participate in semi-structured interviews stratified by whether they had completed, partially completed, or not completed chemotherapy for advanced stage KS.

Understanding Diagnostic Delays for Kaposi Sarcoma in Kenya: A Qualitative Study.

Background: Although HIV-associated Kaposi sarcoma (KS) is frequently diagnosed at an advanced stage in sub-Saharan Africa, reasons for diagnostic delays have not been well described.

Methods: We enrolled patients >18 years with newly diagnosed KS between 2016 and 2019 into the parent study, based in western Kenya. We then purposively selected 30 participants with diversity of disease severity and geographic locations to participate in semistructured interviews.

Compression Therapy for HIV-Associated Kaposi Sarcoma Leg Lymphedema: Results of the Kenyan Improvised Compression for Kaposi Sarcoma Randomized Controlled Trial.

Purpose: Evaluate the effectiveness of compression while receiving chemotherapy compared with chemotherapy alone in the treatment of HIV-associated Kaposi sarcoma (KS) lymphedema.

Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted in a single oncology clinic in western Kenya (NCT03404297). A computer-generated randomization schedule was used to allocate treatment arms.

Feasibility of Rapid Case Ascertainment for Cancer in East Africa: An Investigation of Community-Representative Kaposi Sarcoma in the Era of Antiretroviral Therapy.

Background: Rapid case ascertainment (RCA) refers to the expeditious and detailed examination of patients with a potentially rapidly fatal disease shortly after diagnosis. RCA is frequently performed in resource-rich settings to facilitate cancer research. Despite its utility, RCA is rarely implemented in resource-limited settings and has not been performed for malignancies.

Beyond T Staging in the "Treat-All" Era: Severity and Heterogeneity of Kaposi Sarcoma in East Africa.

Background: Although many patients with Kaposi sarcoma (KS) in sub-Saharan Africa are diagnosed with AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) T1 disease, T1 staging insufficiently captures clinical heterogeneity of advanced KS. Using a representative community-based sample, we detailed disease severity at diagnosis to inform KS staging and treatment in sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods: We performed rapid case ascertainment on people living with HIV, aged 18 years or older, newly diagnosed with KS from 2016 to 2019 at 3 clinic sites in Kenya and Uganda to ascertain disease stage as close as possible to diagnosis.

Clinical Trials for Treatment and Prevention of HIV-Associated Malignancies in Sub-Saharan Africa: Building Capacity and Overcoming Barriers.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to review the current status of clinical trials for HIV-associated malignancies in people living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and efforts made by the AIDS Malignancy Consortium (AMC) to build capacity in SSA for HIV malignancy research.

Methods: All malignancy-related clinical trials in 49 SSA countries on ClinicalTrials.gov were reviewed and evaluated for inclusion and exclusion criteria pertaining to HIV status.

Challenges of HIV Lymphoma Clinical Trials in Africa: Lessons From the AIDS Malignancy Consortium 068 Study.

The purpose of this article is to describe lessons from the first lymphoma clinical trial conducted by the AIDS Malignancy Consortium (AMC) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). AMC-068 was a randomized phase II comparison of intravenous versus oral chemotherapy for HIV-positive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Opening in 2016, AMC-068 planned to enroll 90 patients (45 per arm) in Kenya, Malawi, Uganda, and Zimbabwe over 24 months and follow patients for 24 months to assess overall survival.

Treatment of advanced AIDS-associated Kaposi sarcoma in resource-limited settings: a three-arm, open-label, randomised, non-inferiority trial.

Background: Optimal treatment regimens for AIDS-associated Kaposi sarcoma, a frequent contributor to morbidity and mortality among people with HIV, have not been systematically evaluated in low-income and middle-income countries, where the disease is most common. In this study, we aimed to investigate optimal treatment strategies for advanced stage disease in areas of high prevalence and limited resources.

Methods: In this open-label, non-inferiority trial, we enrolled people with HIV and advanced stage AIDS-associated Kaposi sarcoma attending 11 AIDS Clinical Trials Group sites in Brazil, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

Real-world use of chemotherapy for Kaposi's sarcoma in a large community-based HIV primary care system in Kenya.

Background: Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is one of the most common HIV-associated malignancies in sub-Saharan Africa. Worldwide, the availability of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has improved KS survival. In resource-rich settings, survival has also benefited from chemotherapy, which is widely available.

Developing medical oncology in Africa.

Background: Kenya, like most other developing countries, is undergoing an epidemiologic shift of disease patterns characterized by an increasing prevalence of cancer and other non-communicable diseases straining health care resources which were mainly intended for communicable diseases. We describe the development of sustainable cancer prevention and control programs at Moi University and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Western Kenya.

Methods: The cancer prevention and control program at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital was started by volunteer nurses and clinicians in 2005 in response to a high prevalence of AIDS-related Kaposi sarcoma.

Three year survival among patients with aids-related Kaposi sarcoma treated with chemotherapy and combination antiretroviral therapy at Moi teaching and referral hospital, Kenya.

Background: AIDS-related Kaposi sarcoma (AIDS-KS), a common malignancy in Kenya is associated with high morbidity and mortality. AIDS-KS is treated using bleomycin and vincristine (BV) plus or minus doxorubicin in most low resource settings, with response rates ranging from 24.8 to 87%.

Randomized controlled trial to evaluate locally sourced two-component compression bandages for HIV-associated Kaposi sarcoma leg lymphedema in western Kenya: The Kenyan Improvised Compression for Kaposi Sarcoma (KICKS) study protocol.

Background: HIV-associated Kaposi sarcoma (KS), among the most frequent cancers seen in sub-Saharan Africa, is associated with a high prevalence of lymphedema. Lymphedema causes progressive functional impairment marked by swelling, physical discomfort, disfiguring changes, skin hardening from fibrosis, poor wound healing, and recurrent skin infection. While compression therapy is considered a major component of lymphedema management, this intervention has never been evaluated in HIV-associated KS lymphedema.