Human papillomavirus in cervical adenocarcinoma. An in situ hybridization study

Twenty cervical adenocarcinomas (CACs) in women aged 22 to 71 were investigated by in situ hybridization (ISH) with 6, 11, 16, 18, 31, 35 and 51 HPV biotinylated probes. Two cases, one adenocarcinoma and one adenosquamous carcinoma (in women aged 28 and 40 respectively) showed focal nuclear positivity to 16 HPV Probe in some neoplastic glands. We used ISH, rather than other hybridization techniques, in order to exclude a positivity to viral DNA, due to adjacent squamous epithelium, either normal or metaplastic, and in squamous foci within adenosquamous tumors. Reviewing the literature, we found 33 out of 98 CACs positive to viral DNA by ISH (33.6%). In spite of the differences found from author to author, a relationship between adenocarcinomas of the uterine cervix and HPV infection seems to be possible, as was demonstrated for CIN and invasive cervical carcinomas. These data could explain why the incidence of this neoplasia has tended to increase over the last few years, mainly in younger patients.