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WEDNESDAY, June 13, 2018 (HealthDay News) — Human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive oropharyngeal cancers are increasing among older adults, according to a study published online April 30 in Cancer<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Melina J. Windon, M.D., from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and colleagues retrospectively studied 239 cases of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) diagnosed at two National Comprehensive Cancer Network-designated cancer centers (1995 to 2013). P16 immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization (ISH) for HPV-16, high-risk DNA, and\/or E6\/E7 RNA were performed. Age at diagnosis was compared by p16 and ISH tumor status.<\/p>\n
The researchers found that 60 percent of patients were p16-positive. Over the study period the median age increased among p16-positive patients (P trend = 0.01) from 53 to 58 years, but not among p16-negative patients (P trend = 0.71). The proportion of OPSCCs that were p16-positive increased among patients \u226565 years old, from 41 percent during 1995 to 2000 to 75 percent during 2007 to 2013 (P trend = 0.04). Regardless of age, a p16-positive tumor status improved overall survival.<\/p>\n
“The median age at diagnosis for HPV-related OPSCC is increasing as the proportion of OPSCCs caused by HPV rises among older adults,” the authors write.<\/p>\n
One author is on the scientific advisory boards of Medtronic and Olympus and is a consultant for Ziteo.<\/p>\n
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