After highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) became widespread, several studies demonstrated changes in the incidence of defining and non-defining AIDS cancers among HIV/AIDS patients. We conducted a systematic review of observational studies evaluating the incidence of malignancies before and after the introduction of HAART in people with HIV/AIDS. Eligible studies were searched up to December 2012 in the following databases: Pubmed, Embase, Scielo, Cancerlit and Google Scholar. In this study, we determined the cancer risk ratio by comparing the pre- and post-HAART eras. Twenty-one relevant articles were found, involving more than 600,000 people with HIV/AIDS and 10,891 new cases of cancers. The risk for the development of an AIDS-defining cancer decreased after the introduction of HAART: Kaposi's sarcoma (RR=0.30, 95% CI: 0.28-0.33) and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (RR=0.52, 95% CI: 0.48-0.56), in contrast to invasive cervical cancer (RR=1.46, 95% CI: 1.09-1.94). Among the non-AIDS-defining cancers, the overall risk increased after the introduction of HAART (RR=2.00, 95% CI: 1.79-2.23). The incidence of AIDS-defining cancers decreased and the incidence of non-AIDS-defining cancers increased after the early use of HAART, probably due to better control of viral replication, increased immunity and increased survival provided by new drugs.

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Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a serious complication associated with chronic liver disease. Current guidelines recommended HCC surveillance using ultrasound (US) every six months. However, US surveillance can be challenging for some patients, particularly those with cirrhosis or obesity. Alternately, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and abbreviated MRI have been explored as alternative imaging modalities and may be used in selected patients who are likely to have experienced inadequate US examinations. In this thesis, we aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of imaging-based surveillance and diagnostic strategies in patients at risk of HCC while taking into account technically inadequate examinations and patients' compliance.

Vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) has been progressively implemented in most developed countries for approximately 10 years. In order to increase the protection of the vaccines, a 9-valent vaccine (HPV9) was developed, which provides protection against nine types of the virus. Studies evaluating its safety are rare. Thus, we performed a meta-analysis of three clinical trials assessing adverse effects on women randomly vaccinated with HPV9 or tetravalent vaccine (HPV4), with the objective of analyzing whether the HPV9 is as safe as HPV4. An electronic data search was performed through the PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, and SciELO databases. The studies selected 27,465 women who received one of the two vaccines. Pain (OR 1.72; 95% CI 1.62–1.82) and erythema (OR 1.29; 95% CI 1.21–1.36) occurred significantly more in the HPV9 group. However, there was no significant difference between the groups for the following adverse effects: headache (OR 1.07; 95% CI 0.99–1.15), dizziness (OR 1.09; 95% CI 0.93–1.27), and fatigue (OR 1.09; 95% CI 0.91–1.30), and the occurrence of serious events related to vaccination was similarly rare among those vaccinated. Therefore, our findings demonstrate that HPV9 in female patients is as safe as the tetravalent vaccine.

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