HPV Prevalence and Predictive Biomarkers for Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma in Mexican Patients

Abstract

Background: Worldwide prevalence of Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma (OPSCC) has increased, affecting mostly young males. OPSCC associated with Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection exhibits particular characteristics in terms of response to treatment, hence HPV has been proposed as a prognostic factor. The impact of HPV positivity and associated biomarkers on OPSCC in the Mexican population has not been addressed. Therefore, the analysis of OPSCC prognostic markers in the Mexican population is necessary. Methods: Retrolective study in Mexican OPSCC patients, where HPV prevalence, p16 and EGFR levels were assessed using INNO-LiPA and immunohistochemistry. Results: We found an HPV prevalence of 57.6% in OPSCC cases treated at a reference center in Mexico. HPV and p16 positivity, as well as EGFR, associate with better outcomes in OPSCC patients, and they also promote reduced death risk. Notably, HPV presence and p16 positivity showed a significant association with disease-free survival (DFS), with a HR of 0.15 (p = 0.006) and a HR of 0.17 (p = 0.012), respectively, indicating a possible role as predictive biomarkers in Mexican OPSCC patients. Conclusions: Our results reflect the clinical utility of p16 analysis to improve overall survival (OS) and to predict recurrence in oropharyngeal cancer. These results position p16 and HPV as predictive biomarkers for OPSCC.

Rising Trend in the Prevalence of HPV-Driven Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma during 2000–2022 in Northeastern Italy: Implication for Using p16INK4a as a Surrogate Marker for HPV-Driven Carcinogenesis

“…However, the punctual prevalence can vary considerably according to the population and geographic area [32][33][34][35][37][38][39]. A different exposure to risk factors of oral HPV infection [40], as well as a different genetic susceptibility to persistent oral HPV infection [41], might partly explain these different figures.…”

Dissecting Crucial Gene Markers Involved in HPV-Associated Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma from RNA-Sequencing Data through Explainable Artificial Intelligence

“…However, it has been increasingly evident in recent years that Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection, primarily affecting the oropharynx, is critical in developing HNSCC [4]. Oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) has drawn attention re-cently due to an incredible surge in cases, distinctly those pertinent to HPV [5][6][7]. On a global scale, HPV infection contributes to 20-60% of OPSCC cases, with HPV-16 being the predominant strain, accounting for almost 80% of HPV-related OPSCC cases [8][9][10].…”