HPV load and anal cytological abnormalities.

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Oncology
• Public Health

Background:

• Anal cancer is frequently associated with high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.
• Early detection of anal cytological abnormalities is crucial for preventing cancer progression, especially in HIV-positive individuals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between estimated HPV viral load and the presence of abnormal cytology in anal samples.
• To determine if HPV viral load can serve as a biomarker for identifying individuals with anal cytological abnormalities.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of anal cytological samples from 42 HIV-positive patients using conventional cytology and Hybrid Capture II.
• Quantification of HPV viral load using the relative light unit/cutoff (RLU/CO) value.

Main Results:

• Abnormal anal cytology was detected in 30.95% of samples.
• High-risk HPV infection was significantly more prevalent in samples with cytological abnormalities (P = 0.0002).
• The median HPV viral load (RLU/CO) was substantially higher in samples with abnormalities (10.39) compared to negative samples (0.51) (P = 0.0001).

Conclusions:

• Estimated high-risk HPV viral load is significantly elevated in anal samples exhibiting cytological abnormalities.
• HPV viral load may serve as a valuable adjunct to anal cytology for patient triage to high-resolution anoscopy and biopsy.