Human papillomavirus and prostate cancer: systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

The involvement of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the prostate carcinogenesis is a controversial issue. The presented meta-analysis was carried out to systematize the currently available research results regarding this question. The meta-analysis includes case–control studies from 1991 to 2022, which were collected from publicly available bibliometric databases. The meta-analysis was performed using Meta-Essentials_1.5 software. We used Begg’s and Egger’s methods to assess publication bias. Cochran’s Q test was used to assess heterogeneity and the I2 index was employed for calculating the variation in the pooled estimations. The analysis was based on data from 27 case–control studies, which in total yielded 1607 tumour tissue samples of prostate and 1515 control samples (317 samples of normal tissue, 1198 samples of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)). According to the data obtained, there was high risk of prostate cancer by HPV infection in both cases. HPV was found in prostate cancer in 25.8% of cases, while in normal tissue samples the virus was detected in 9.2% of cases and in 17.4% with BPH as a control. In particular, more studies on the association of HPV and prostate cancer are needed to prove the role of HPV in the development of prostate cancer. In addition to the controversial question of whether HPV infection is associated with prostate cancer risk, it is worth considering whether the samples used as a control have an impact on the results. The impact of HPV in prostate tumour tissue samples on outcome should also be investigated.

Unveiling the Role of Human Papillomavirus in Urogenital Carcinogenesis a Comprehensive Review

“…Longitudinal studies are needed to track HPV progression over time and understand its evolution into cancer. [85][86][87][88][89]91] for BC, [71,[105][106][107][108] for RCC, [111,112,114] for TC and [68][69][70][71] for PCa. Abbrevations: BC: Bladder cancer, HPV: Human papillomavirus, PCa: Prostate cancer, RCC: Renal cell carcinoma, TC: Testicular cancer.…”

“…Identifying high-risk populations and developing targeted interventions can help tailor prevention and screening strategies. Additionally, [85][86][87][88][89]91] for BC, [71,[105][106][107][108] for RCC, [111,112,114] for TC and [68][69][70][71] for PCa. Abbrevations: BC: Bladder cancer, HPV: Human papillomavirus, PCa: Prostate cancer, RCC: Renal cell carcinoma, TC: Testicular cancer.…”

“…A meta-analysis, conducted by Tsydenova IA et al, included 27 studies and 3122 tissue samples, focusing solely on studies using PCR-based methods, showed a significant association between HPV and PCa in normal tissues, although among the studies using BPH tissues as controls, there was no significant relationship between HPV presence and PCa. These results highlighted how even the choice of control tissue can influence outcomes [68].…”

Concurrent High Risk HPV35, HPV45, and HPV59 Infections in Prostate and Bladder Cancer Tissues of a Single Patient

“…Hence, it is possible that HPV may also play a major role in the development of prostate and bladder cancers. Indeed, several studies have found a significant number of samples of bladder and prostate cancers expressing HPV oncoproteins [10,[18][19][20] Interestingly , our investigation focuses on a patient diagnosed with concurrent prostate and bladder cancers, providing a unique opportunity to explore the presence and expression of different HPV types. Our results revealed the presence and expression of HPV types 35, 45, and 59 in both organs, a novel finding not previously demonstrated in any study worldwide.…”