Human Papillomavirus Linked to Cancer
HCS/245
January 28, 2014
Breanna Wallace, PhD
Human Papillomavirus Linked to Cancer A new kind of virus threat might be lurking within the deep crevices of our tonsils. Back in the early 1980s, a research in Finland had identified Human Papillomavirus (HPV) as the virus that developed from an oropharyngeal tumor (Syrjanen & Lamberg, 1983). Could there be a link between HPV and oropharyngeal cancer? To find out about the correlation, Dr. Maura Gillison conducted a research involving participants with oropharyngeal cancer. Accumulated evidence causing a large proportion of oropharyngeal cancers is due to HPV and that these HPV-positive cancers are increasing. This surge of cancer associated with HPV concerns the development of the virus, the effect on the trends in its treatment, and the perspective of the population.
To start things off it is appropriate to give an overview of the disease. Oropharyngeal cancer is a cancer that occurs at the base of the tongue. The symptoms of oropharyngeal cancer are not painful and unclear. For instance, it may feel like a tenacious cold or a sore in your mouth that persist. The nonspecific and often painless symptoms are often the reasons why oropharyngeal cancer is undetected until it progresses to the later stage. The medical community for many years was largely divided between those who were skeptical about HPV as a risk factor for oropharyngeal cancer and those who are convinced to research such a study. Dr. Gillison is part of the latter group and her research will be discussed.
Dr. Gillison’s research started in 1998; she was keen on investigating the significance of HPV on oropharyngeal cancer. Her research consisted of 300 participants from whom she collected tissue samples and analyzed the data in 2005 (Scudellari, 2013). The result was conclusive and led others to do their own studies to add to the evidence of the correlation of HPV to oropharyngeal cancer. In the late 1990s most oropharyngeal cancer are blamed on consumption of alcohol and tobacco. Additionally, the majority of patients was in their fifties and has been using alcohol and tobacco for about 30 years. However, younger and considerably healthier patients started showing up for consultations and most are diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer due to HPV. Emerging threat of the virus caused an alarming rise on incidence of oropharyngeal cancer. For example, in 1985, there were 16 percent cases of oropharyngeal cancer while in 2005 the rate went up to 72 percent (Gillisonia & Chaturvedi, 2011). Moreover, in 2025, the incidence of this type of cancer is predicted to reach 90 percent (Gillisonia & Chaturvedi, 2011). Dr. Gillison diligently studied different stages of the development of HPV to prove her findings.
Dr. Gillison proceeded to prove her findings by examining HPV in early, middle, and late stage of the tumors. She gained knowledge of the clinical characteristics of the virus and was able to recognize the molecular biomarkers that were not found in tumors without HPV. Furthermore, in 2000, Dr. Gillison and her colleagues presented the results that demonstrate that HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer is a cancer that originates in the deep part of the tonsils. Additionally, the HPV’s DNA incorporates itself into the nuclei of healthy cells then generates toxic E6 and E7 proteins (Scudellari, 2013). These two proteins inhibit a tumor suppressor protein, p53. Interestingly, HPV stops the mechanism of p53 and keeps the gene that produces p53 undamaged. Currently, researchers and doctors are learning more about how HPV causes oropharyngeal cancer and what treatments are effective to reactivate p53.
The present treatment for oropharyngeal cancer is a mixture of chemotherapy and radiation. For chemotherapy, a strong toxic drug called Cisplatin is given. This has various and damaging side effects to the voice box and throat. In contrast, the most current form of