HIV/AIDS Glossary

A retrovirus that infects only T lymphocytes (T cells). Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is transmitted through exposure to contaminated blood, through sexual contact, and from a parent who has the virus to the child when giving birth or through breastfeeding/chestfeeding via the parent's own milk. HTLV-1 is prevalent mostly in Japan, Africa, the Caribbean Islands, and South America. HTLV-1 can cause adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma, a rare and aggressive cancer of the white blood cells.