Research has revealed an association between cumulative malaria infections and endemic Burkitt lymphoma (eBL) in the sub-Saharan African countries of Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. It also notes that children who develop the cancer are likely to have suffered from silent malaria for many years.
The study, which was conducted between 2010 and 2016 in children under 15, using a case-control design (where children with disease are compared to children without), found a strong positive relationship between the cumulative number of P. falciparum infections acquired and the risk of developing BL.
