Study Underscores Link Between HPV and Oral Cancers

New research published in JAMA Oncology helps further establish the connection between the human papillomavirus (HPV) and head and neck cancers. In reviewing data from nearly 97,000 subjects taking part in two national prospective studies, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York found that when the HPV-16 strain is detected in the oral cavity, a patient is 22 times more likely than uninfected individuals to develop these types of cancers.

Linked as a triggering mechanism for head and neck cancers, a rising proportion of which are oropharyngeal cancers, oral HPV-16 has been shown in previous studies to be transmitted through sexual activity. According to the Einstein team, its research is the first to conclusively demonstrate that HPV-16’s presence in the oral cavity precedes the development of oropharyngeal cancers.

The researchers also found that the presence of other types of oral HPVs — specifically, beta- and gamma-HPVs, which are usually detected in the skin — was associated with the development of head and neck cancers, indicating a broader role for HPV strains than previously thought.