Older Adults Increasingly Have HPV+ Oropharyngeal Cancers

A study published in Cancer found more older adults are coming down with human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive oropharyngeal cancers, reports Medical Xpress . The researchers retrospectively studied 239 cases of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) diagnosed at two National Comprehensive Cancer Network-designated cancer centers from 1995 to 2013. P16 immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization (ISH) for HPV-16, high-risk DNA, and/or E6/E7 RNA were conducted. Age at diagnosis was compared by p16 and ISH tumor status. The team determined 60 percent of participants were p16-positive. Over the study period the average age rose among p16-positive individuals from 53 to 58 years, but not among p16-negative cases. The proportion of OPSCCs that were p16-positive climbed among those 65 or older, from 41 percent during 1995 to 2000 to 75 percent during 2007 to 2013. Irrespective of age, a p16-positive tumor status improved overall survival. "The median age at diagnosis for HPV-related OPSCC is increasing as the proportion of OPSCCs caused by HPV rises among older adults," the researchers note.