title: Significance of p16 positive expression in oropharyngeal cancers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The involvement of HPV in oral and oropharyngeal carcinogenesis was first proposed in 2004, based on epithelial HPV tropism and detection of HPV genotypes in oral squamous cell carcinoma samples. While 60-70% of oropharynx tumors may be HPV-positive, only 10 to 19% of tumors of the oral cavity, larynx and hypopharynx appear to have HPV infection. The aim of the study was to evaluate HPV infection associated with oropharyngeal cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seventy-eight cases were selected for p16 immunoexpression reactions, and demographic data were collected for comparisons.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most patients were over 60 years old, and 64.1% were smokers. Immunohistochemistry results showed that 86.3% of cases stained positive for p16 protein.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The oropharyngeal cancer profile at Erasto Gaertner Hospital presented a high index of smokers over 60 years as well a high number of p16+ tumors, for what we can not determinate the main etiologic factor, but can be aware of the number of patients that presented HPV infection. Since prevention is still the best way to deal with cancer disease, it is important to analyze the interaction of these two etiologic factors and how to detect lesions at an early stage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Erasto Gaertner Hospital, Curitiba, Brazil E-mail : juliana.schussel24@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Regiane B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Bixofis
authors.forename: Laurindo Moacir
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Sassi
authors.forename: Cleverson
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Patussi
authors.forename: Juliana E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Sergio O
authors.initials: SO
authors.lastname: Ioshii
authors.forename: Juliana L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Schussel
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D019941:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D009959:Oropharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D030361:Papillomavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism*; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D000077195:Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck
chemical_list: C000614131:CDKN2A protein, human; D019941:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins