Oncoviruses and melanomas: A retrospective study and literature review

Abstract

The role of human oncoviruses in melanoma has been poorly investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between oncoviruses and melanomas searching for human papillomavirus (HPV), Epstein Barr virus (EBV), and human herpesvirus 8DNA in melanoma specimens. Formalin‐fixed and paraffin‐embedded tissue specimens of cutaneous, mucosal, and ocular melanomas (OM) were selected from the Pathology Departments of the Galliera Hospital (Genoa) and the University Hospitals of Turin and Cagliari. Cutaneous and mucosal nevi have been collected as controls. The oncoviruses search has been performed with different polymerase chain reaction reagent kits. Fifty‐four melanomas (25 mucosal, 12 ocular, and 17 cutaneous) and 26 nevi (15 cutaneous and 11 mucosal) specimens were selected. The detection rate for one of the investigated oncoviruses was 17% in mucosal, 20% in ocular, and 0% in cutaneous melanomas (CMs). Despite the differences between groups seeming remarkable, there was no statistical significance ( p > 0.5). Our data do not support a primary role of oncoviruses in melanoma carcinogenesis; however, the finding of HPV and EBV DNA in a considerable fraction of mucosal and OMs suggests that these viruses may act as cofactors in the development of extra‐CMs.

Molecular investigation of some DNA viruses in mucosal melanoma: Case–control study

“…Indeed, the CuV genomic sequences, first detected in one sample of CM by viral enrichment and high throughput sequencing, 6 were subsequently detected in only 2 out of 185 melanoma biopsies using specific realtime PCR. 19 Some human herpesviruses were also only rarely detected in MM 13,14 Moreover, in our study, there was no significant association between B19V infection and MM. B19V DNA was detected rarely, both in MM and HM samples, and the viral load was generally low, suggesting an asymptomatic persistence rather than a causative role of the virus in MM pathogenesis.…”

“…Indeed, the CuV genomic sequences, first detected in one sample of CM by viral enrichment and high throughput sequencing, 6 were subsequently detected in only 2 out of 185 melanoma biopsies using specific real‐time PCR 19 . Some human herpesviruses were also only rarely detected in MM 13,14 …”

“…Furthermore, since different molecular methods characterized by different sensitivities have been used, it is difficult to compare the results obtained in the different studies. Overall, in the above‐referenced studies, robust evidence for a strong causal relationship between viral infections and melanomas is lacking 6–14 …”

“…Previous studies exploring the association between viral infections and both CM and MM are limited and highly heterogeneous 6–14 . These investigations have mainly focused on the nucleic acid detection of herpesviruses, polyomaviruses, and papillomaviruses (usually without subsequent typing of detected HPVs) in cancer biopsies.…”

“…Overall, in the above-referenced studies, robust evidence for a strong causal relationship between viral infections and melanomas is lacking. [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] To further explore the possible association between viral infections and MM pathogenesis, in the current study, we investigated the prevalence of DNA of a broad range of viruses in 31 MMs and in 15 biopsies of healthy mucosa (HM), using molecular methods. The viruses included in this study were some oncogenic viruses: αand β-human papillomaviruses (HPVs); Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV); Epstein Barr virus (EBV); human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8); and five viruses frequently detected in cancer specimens, thus hypothetically involved in the carcinogenesis: herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 (HSV1 and HSV2), human herpesvirus 6, (HHV6), cutavirus (CutaV), and human parvovirus B19 (B19V).…”