Objective To examine the incidence and risk factors for anal cancer in a multicenter cohort of HIV-positive and negative men who have sex with men followed between 1984 and 2006 (MACS). Methods Prospective analysis using Poisson regression and Cox proportional hazard models, and a nested case-control study using conditional logistic regression. Results There were 28 cases of anal cancer among the 6,972 men who were evaluated. The incidence rate was significantly higher in HIV-positive men than in HIV-negative men (IR= 69 vs. 14 per 100,000 person-years). Among HIV-positive men, anal cancer incidence was higher in the HAART era than the pre-HAART era (IR=137 vs. 30 per 100,000 person-years). In multivariate analysis restricted to the HAART era, anal cancer risk increased significantly with HIV infection (RH=4.7, 95%CI=1.3–17), and increasing number of unprotected receptive anal sex partners at the first three study visits (p-trend=0.03). Among HIV-positive men, current HAART use did not decrease anal cancer risk. Conclusion HIV-positive men had increased risk of anal cancer. Improved survival of HIV-positive individuals following HAART initiation may allow for sufficient time for human papillomavirus (HPV) associated anal dysplasias to develop into malignancies, thus explaining the increased incidence of anal cancer in the HAART era.

These findings suggest that expression of the FP can be measured in men who have sex with men with and without HIV infection and reflects multisystem dysfunction in this population; further investigations are needed to better understand clinical utility.

Introduction Human papillomavirus (HPV) is an important risk factor for oropharyngeal cancer. Individuals with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have higher oral HPV prevalence but the risk factors for oral HPV infection are not well understood for either HIV-positive or HIV-negative individuals. Methods This study was nested within the MACS (men) and WIHS (women) cohorts. Exfoliated oral epithelial cells were collected from 379 HIV-positive and 266 at-risk HIV-negative individuals using a rinse and gargle with Scope™ mouthwash. Samples were tested for 36 types of HPV DNA using PGMY09/11 consensus primers and reverse line blot hybridization. Risk factors for oral HPV infection were explored using logistic regression with generalized estimating equations (GEE) in this cross-sectional analysis. Results Prevalent oral HPV infection was common (34%), including HPV16 infection in 5.7% of participants. HIV-positive individuals had increased odds of prevalent oral HPV infection compared to HIV-negative individuals (aOR=2.1, 95%CI=1.6–2.8). Risk factors for prevalent oral HPV differed in HIV-positive and HIV-negative participants. Among HIV-negative individuals, higher number of recent oral sex or rimming partners were strong risk factors for prevalent oral HPV infection (each p-trend<0.01). In contrast, among HIV-positive individuals lower CD4 T-cell count (p-trend<0.001) and higher number of lifetime sexual partners (p-trend=0.03) were strong risk factors. Conclusions Oral HPV prevalence was elevated in HIV-positive individuals after controlling for differences in cigarette smoking and sexual behavior, supporting the possibility that HIV may affect the natural history of oral HPV. Impact Immunosuppression may contribute to increased persistence or progression of oral HPV infection.