The human papillomavirus status of 114 endocervical adenocarcinoma cases by dot blot hybridization

The reported rate of human papillomavirus (HPV) positivity in cases of endocervical adenocarcinoma averages 38% (range, 0% to 100%) and, in contrast to cervical squamous cell carcinoma, HPV type 18 rather than type 16 is the predominant type. The HPV positivity rate and distribution of types (status) in 114 endocervical adenocarcinoma cases (37 in situ and 77 invasive) were determined by dot blot hybridization using biotinylated probes to HPV types 6, 11, 16, 18, 31, 33, and 35. Human papillomavirus DNA was present in 27% of in situ and in 44% of invasive adenocarcinomas, and in nearly all histologic subtypes of invasive adenocarcinoma. Human papillomavirus status was not predictive of tumor grade, volume, depth of invasion, lymph-vascular space involvement, age at presentation, or year of diagnosis. Type of HPV might influence the histologic subtype of invasive adenocarcinoma, as HPV type 16 predominated in the adenosquamous carcinomas while HPV type 18 was more frequently found in all other subtypes. Since only types 16, 18, and 33 were identified, an oncogenic role for HPV in endocervical carcinogenesis was supported.