Genotype Distribution and Prevalence of Human Papillomavirus in Head and Neck Cancer Samples from Istanbul, Turkey
Muammer Osman Köksal,
Başak Keskin Yalçın,
Fahriye Keskin,
Sevgi Çiftçi,
Ibrahim Yağcı,
Seyhan Özakkoyunlu Hasçiçek,
Bora Başaran,
Kemal Değer,
Ali Ağaçfidan,
Alexander Quaas,
Baki Akgül
Affiliations
Muammer Osman Köksal
Department of Medical Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, 34093 Istanbul, Turkey
Başak Keskin Yalçın
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dentistry, Istanbul University, 34116 Istanbul, Turkey
Fahriye Keskin
Unit of Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Dentistry, Istanbul University, 34116 Istanbul, Turkey
Sevgi Çiftçi
Unit of Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Dentistry, Istanbul University, 34116 Istanbul, Turkey
Ibrahim Yağcı
Department of Otorhinolaryngology & Head and Neck Surgery, Sisli Hamidiye Training and Research Hospital, University of Health and Science, 34371 Istanbul, Turkey
Seyhan Özakkoyunlu Hasçiçek
Department of Pathology, Sisli Hamidiye Training and Research Hospital, University of Health and Science, 34371 Istanbul, Turkey
Bora Başaran
Department of Otorhinolaryngology & Head and Neck Surgery, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, 34093 Istanbul, Turkey
Kemal Değer
Department of Otorhinolaryngology & Head and Neck Surgery, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, 34093 Istanbul, Turkey
Ali Ağaçfidan
Department of Medical Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, 34093 Istanbul, Turkey
Alexander Quaas
Institute of Pathology, University Hospital Cologne, 50937 Cologne, Germany
Baki Akgül
Institute of Virology, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital of Cologne, 50935 Cologne, Germany
Human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated tumors account for a significant proportion of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) in developed countries. In recent years, there has been a rise of HPV infections associated with HNSCC, especially HPV16, which is the most commonly detected type in oral and oropharyngeal cancers. To investigate the frequency of HPV-driven HNSCC among patients living in Turkey, HPV DNA positivity and p16INK4A expression were assessed in primary tumor biopsies (n = 106). Eighteen out of one hundred and six (19%) HNSCC tumors showed p16INK4A overexpression, and 26/106 cases (24.5%) were positive for HPV DNA. Sixteen out of twenty-six samples were positive for both HPV DNA and p16INK4A staining. HPV16 could be isolated from 22/26 samples (84.6%) and was found to be the most frequently detected HPV type. This study represents the largest cohort of Turkish patients with HNSCC characterized according to HPV status and p16INK4A expression. Our data suggest that HPV16 infection, along with smoking, contribute to the development of HNSCC.
