Half Of Penile Cancers Linked To Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Infection

Main Category: Cervical Cancer / HPV Vaccine
Also Included In: Cancer / Oncology
Article Date: 25 Aug 2009 - 12:00 PDT

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Around half of all tumours [including malignant] of the penis are linked to the most common forms of the sexually transmitted infection human papillomavirus (HPV), suggests research published ahead of print in the Journal of Clinical Pathology.

HPV vaccines that are already available are likely to be effective in treating penile tumours, Spanish researchers have concluded.

HPV can lead to cancers of the cervix, vulva, vagina, and anus in women. In men, it can lead to cancers of the anus and penis.

Penile cancer is rare, accounting for less than 1% of adult male cancers in Europe and North America, but as much as 10% in Africa and Asia. Globally, there are 26,300 new cases every year.

Causes are thought to include several risk factors, including unretractable foreskin, not being circumcised, poor hygiene, history of smoking, multiple sexual partners and history of genital warts or other sexually transmitted infections.

Researchers from the Cancer Epidemiology Research Program at the Catalan Institute of Oncology in Barcelona, Spain reviewed 31 major penile cancer studies published between 1986 and June 2008 to evaluate the prevalence of HPV in penile cancer.

Collectively, the studies included details of 1,466 penile cancers and the prevalence of HPV in those cases was 46.9%, ranging from 40.7% prevalence in South America to 57.6% in North America.

There are more than 100 types of HPV and the researchers found that HPV16 was the most common among the cases in the studies - accounting for 61.5% of cancers. The next most common type was HPV18 (detected in 13.2% of cases).

The authors said that around 7,000 cases of penile cancer could be prevented every year by eradicating HPV16 and 18.

An international study is under way to collect and analyse a large number of penile cancer samples from more than 17 countries something the authors welcome as a way of obtaining new evidence to evaluate the contribution of other HPV types and multiple HPV infection.

The researchers conclude: "Systematic international studies are ongoing, they will probably help in reducing uncertainty and provide new evidence on the involvement of HPV in penile carcinomas."

Citation:
"Human papillomavirus prevalence and type distribution in penile carcinoma."
J Clin Pathol 2009; doi 10.1136/jcp.2008.063149

Source
Journal Of Clinical Pathology