Causes of Hodgkin lymphoma

Although the cause of Hodgkin lymphoma is unknown, research is going on all the time to find the cause. Hodgkin lymphoma is more common in younger people in their 20s, although it can occur at any age.

Some factors can contribute to the development of Hodgkin lymphoma. These include:

• poor immunity: for example, in people who are taking medicines after an organ transplant; in people who have HIV, and some rare medical conditions that reduce immunity
• infection with the Epstein Barr virus (which causes glandular fever) may slightly increase the risk of developing Hodgkin lymphoma later in life.

Hodgkin lymphoma is not infectious and cannot be passed on to other people. Other members of your family will not be more likely to develop Hodgkin lymphoma, just because you have it, unless you have an identical twin. The identical twin of someone with Hodgkin lymphoma has a very slightly increased risk of developing it themselves.