Eur J Cancer

Background

The presence of human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA in oropharyngeal squamous cell cancer (OPSCC) tissue appears to be a strong predictor of improved prognosis, but this observation has not been explored in a population-based sample with generalizable findings.

Methods

Follow-up data from a large sample of OPSCC patients identified through six population-based cancer registries in the US was used to characterize the association of tumor HPV status with survival.

Results

HPV DNA was detected in tumor tissue from 71% (378/529) of the OPSCC patients. A total of 65% of patients with HPV16-associated tumors survived 5-years compared to 46% of patients with other HPV-types and 28% of patients with HPV-negative tumors (p log-rank test <0.0001). The OPSCC patients with detectable HPV16 DNA had a 62% reduced hazard of death at 5-years, and patients with other HPV types had a 42% reduced hazard of death at 5-years compared to HPV-negative patients. Compared to non-Hispanic Whites, Blacks with OPSCC had a 2.5-fold greater risk of death at 5-years after adjustment for HPV-status and other prognostic variables. Both surgery and radiation therapy were associated with a reduced 5-year risk of death, but no evidence was found for an interaction between HPV-status and radiotherapy or surgery on survival time.

Conclusions

Data from this US study suggest that HPV16-positive OPSCC patients survive longer than HPV-negative patients regardless of treatment, highlighting the prognostic importance of HPV-status for this malignancy. Optimal treatment regimens for OPSCC could be tailored to each patient’s HPV-status and prognostic profile.malignancy.

26602016

PMC4666760

Journal Article

CDC Public Access