What Are the Current HPV Types Contributing to Cervical High-Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesions, Adenocarcinoma...

To determine the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) types by genotyping high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL), adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS), and early-stage invasive cervical cancer (ICC) in patients who have been exposed or are naïve to the HPV vaccine.

This was a cross-sectional study. All patients over the age of 18 years who presented to the colposcopy clinic with HSIL, AIS, or ICC who were expected to undergo a cervical biopsy, loop electrosurgical excisional procedure, or cone biopsy were eligible and approached for informed consent. HPV typing was performed to identify the causative HPV types.

Between November 2016 and May 2023, 113 patients (34 vaccinated with at least 1 dose, and 79 non-vaccinated) consented to this study. The median ages at coitarche and study entry were 18 (range 14-37) and 34 (range 24-66) years, respectively. Only 3 patients were vaccinated prior to coitarche. Histology was as follows: HSIL = 97, AIS = 9, HSIL and AIS = 2, squamous cell carcinoma = 4, and 1 patient with adenocarcinoma. The causative HPV type was 16 or 18 in 59% of the vaccinated group and in 66% of the non-vaccinated group. Most vaccinated patients (74%) reported receiving 2-3 doses of HPV vaccine.

In our cohort, the distribution of causative HPV 16 and 18 in patients presenting with HSIL/AIS/ICC was similar between vaccine-naïve and vaccinated patients. This data suggests cervical screening guidelines should not differentiate between "vaccinated" and "non-vaccinated" women without further details of their vaccination.