Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Improved survival of Japanese patients with human papillomavirus-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Journal of Clinical Oncology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

The prevalence of oropharyngeal carcinoma is rising in western Europe and the United States, where there appears to be a strong association between human papillomavirus (HPV) and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC). However, such a correlation has not yet been fully evaluated in Japan.

Methods

We performed a retrospective analysis of the association between tumour HPV status and the demographic and clinicopathological parameters of 71 patients with OPSCC at Hokkaido University Hospital, Japan, between 1998 and 2009. The parameters included age, gender, survival, tumour subsite, tumour–node–metastasis (TNM) stage, smoking history, second primary tumour status, recurrence/residual disease at the primary site, and overall survival. HPV status was established by multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis.

Results

Of the 71 oropharyngeal cancers, 20 were positive for HPV-16, two for HPV-18, and one for HPV-58. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis showed improved overall survival rates in patients with HPV-positive tumours (p = 0.0038) compared with HPV-negative tumours. Of the 45 patients who received chemoradiotherapy, HPV-positive patients experienced better overall survival than HPV-negative patients (p = 0.0032). In a multivariate analysis, the survival benefit of HPV-positive patients was independent of age and T and N classification.

Conclusions

HPV status is a significantly favourable prognostic factor in oropharyngeal cancer and could be used as a marker to optimize the treatment of patients with this type of cancer in Japan.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Parkin DM, Bray F, Ferlay J et al (2005) Global cancer statistics, 2002. CA Cancer J Clin 55:74–108

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Attner P, Du J, Näsman A et al (2011) Human papillomavirus and survival in patients with base of tongue cancer. Int J Cancer 128:2892–2897

    Google Scholar 

  3. Kreimer AR, Clifford GM, Boyle P et al (2005) Human papillomavirus types in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas worldwide: a systematic review. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 14:467–475

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Nasman A, Attner P, Hammarstedt L et al (2009) Incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV) positive tonsillar carcinoma in Stockholm, Sweden: an epidemic of viral-induced carcinoma? Int J Cancer 125:362–366

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Ryerson AB, Peters ES, Coughlin SS et al (2008) Burden of potentially human papillomavirus-associated cancers of the oropharynx and oral cavity in the US, 1998–2003. Cancer 113:2901–2909

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Muñoz N, Bosch F, de Sanjosé S et al (2003) Epidemiologic classification of human papillomavirus types associated with cervical cancer. N Engl J Med 348:518–527

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Syrjänen K, Syrjänen S, Lamberg M et al (1983) Morphological and immunohistochemical evidence suggesting human papillomavirus (HPV) involvement in oral squamous cell carcinogenesis. Int J Oral Surg 12:418–424

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Ang K, Harris J, Wheeler R et al (2010) Human papillomavirus and survival of patients with oropharyngeal cancer. N Engl J Med 363:24–35

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Fakhry C, Westra WH, Li S et al (2008) Improved survival of patients with human papillomavirus-positive head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in a prospective clinical trial. J Natl Cancer Inst 100:261–269

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Sedaghat AR, Zhang Z, Begum S et al (2009) Prognostic significance of human papillomavirus in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas. Laryngoscope 119:1542–1549

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Nishiwaki M, Yamamoto T, Tone S et al (2008) Genotyping of human papillomaviruses by a novel one-step typing method with multiplex PCR and clinical applications. J Clin Microbiol 46:1161–1168

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Settle K, Posner MR, Schumaker LM et al (2009) Racial survival disparity in head and neck cancer results from low prevalence of human papillomavirus infection in black oropharyngeal cancer patients. Cancer Prev Res (Phila) 2:776–781

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Bennett KL, Lee W, Lamarre E et al (2009) HPV status-independent association of alcohol and tobacco exposure or prior radiation therapy with promoter methylation of FUSSEL18, EBF3, IRX1, and SEPT9, but not SLC5A8, in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. Genes Chromosom Cancer 49:319–326

    Google Scholar 

  14. Hoffmann M, Ihloff AS, Gorogh T et al (2010) p16(INK4a) overexpression predicts translational active human papillomavirus infection in tonsillar cancer. Int J Cancer 127:1595–1602

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Luginbuhl A, Sanders M, Spiro JD (2009) Prevalence, morphology, and prognosis of human papillomavirus in tonsillar cancer. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol 118:742–749

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Straetmans JM, Olthof N, Mooren JJ et al (2009) Human papillomavirus reduces the prognostic value of nodal involvement in tonsillar squamous cell carcinomas. Laryngoscope 119:1951–1957

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Hafkamp HC, Manni JJ, Haesevoets A et al (2008) Marked differences in survival rate between smokers and nonsmokers with HPV 16-associated tonsillar carcinomas. Int J Cancer 122:2656–2664

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Kies MS, Holsinger FC, Lee JJ et al (2010) Induction chemotherapy and cetuximab for locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck: results from a phase II prospective trial. J Clin Oncol 28:8–14

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Syrjanen S (2004) HPV infections and tonsillar carcinoma. J Clin Pathol 57:449–455

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Ragin CC, Taioli E (2007) Survival of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck in relation to human papillomavirus infection: review and meta-analysis. Int J Cancer 121:1813–1820

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Allen CT, Lewis JS Jr, El-Mofty SK et al (2010) Human papillomavirus and oropharynx cancer: biology, detection and clinical implications. Laryngoscope 120:1756–1772

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Licitra L, Perrone F, Bossi P et al (2006) High-risk human papillomavirus affects prognosis in patients with surgically treated oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. J Clin Oncol 24:5630–5636

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank Yuko Ishida for her technical assistance. This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan.

Conflict of interest

No author has any conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Kita 15, Nishi 7, Kita-ku, Sapporo, 060-8638, Japan

    Takatsugu Mizumachi, Satoshi Kano, Tomohiro Sakashita, Hiromitsu Hatakeyama, Seigo Suzuki, Akihiro Homma, Nobuhiko Oridate & Satoshi Fukuda

Authors
  1. Takatsugu Mizumachi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Satoshi Kano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Tomohiro Sakashita
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Hiromitsu Hatakeyama
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Seigo Suzuki
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Akihiro Homma
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Nobuhiko Oridate
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Satoshi Fukuda
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Takatsugu Mizumachi.

About this article

Cite this article

Mizumachi, T., Kano, S., Sakashita, T. et al. Improved survival of Japanese patients with human papillomavirus-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Int J Clin Oncol 18, 824–828 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-012-0469-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-012-0469-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation