Immunohistochemical demonstration of multiple HPV types in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of human papillomaviruses (HPV) types 6, 11, 16, 18, 31, 33, 42, 51, 52, 56 and 58 in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma specimens using immunohistochemical reactions and to correlate the presence of HPV with the clinical and pathological characteristics of these patients. Tissue samples were collected from 40 patients with primary laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) and from 33 subjects with non-neoplastic laryngeal lesions or laryngeal nodules, which served as a control group. Human papilloma virus was detected in 6 (15%) of the 40 patients. Five (83.4%) of six patients with HPV positive tumors had G2 (moderately differentiated), one patient (16.6%) had G3 (poorly differentiated), and no patient with HPV positive tumor had a G1 (well-differentiated) tumor. Four (66.6%) of the six HPV positive tumors were in the supraglottic region, one (16.6%) tumor was located in the glottis, and one (16.6%) HPV positive tumor was in the subglotic region. Five (83.4%) of six HPV positive tumors were T3-T4, and one was T2. Three of six HPV positive patients had no clinically evident cervical lymph nodes (N0), and three of the HPV positive patients were N1 or N2. Human papillomavirus was not detected in any of the samples from the control group. The presence of HPV infection in 15% of the cases may suggest a possible role in the etiology of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma. However, no significant correlation between HPV incidence and histological grading and clinical staging could be demonstrated.