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Implications of human papillomavirus type for survival in cervical squamous cell carcinoma
B. Hagmar1, J.-J.P. Christensen, B. Johansson
1Department of Pathology, National Hospital, Oslo, Norway, Department of Gynecology and Department of Pathology, University of Göteborg, Sweden, Laboratory of Clinical Microbiology, Sabbatsberg Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden, and Department of Gynecologic Oncology, The Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
Abstract:
In a Swedish series of 107 invasive squamous carcinomas of the cervix, DNA extraction from paraffin-embedded material was successful in 97 cases. The prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) in this material was 86.6%, as determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using both consensus and type-specific primers. HPV type 16 was most common (42.3%; other types were 31 (12.3%), 18 (9.3%) and 33 (10.3%). Seventeen cases (17.3%) were positive for the consensus primers only and were regarded as HPV of unknown type. There was no significant difference in corrected survival between patients with HPV-positive or -negative tumors. In the HPV-positive group, patients with tumors containing HPV 33 or HPV 18 had a significantly poorer prognosis than patients with tumors containing other types of HPV DNA (relative hazard 3.18, 95% confidence interval 1.37-7.39, P = 0.007), implying a prognostic significance of HPV type.