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. 2020 Apr 1:15:20.
doi: 10.1186/s13027-020-00286-8. eCollection 2020.

Role of human papillomavirus infection in the etiology of vulvar cancer in Italian women

Mario Preti  1 , John Charles Rotondo  2   3 , Dana Holzinger  4 , Leonardo Micheletti  1 , Niccolò Gallio  1 , Sandrine McKay-Chopin  2 , Christine Carreira  2 , Sebastiana Silvana Privitera  5 , Reiko Watanabe  2 , Ruediger Ridder  6   7 , Michael Pawlita  4 , Chiara Benedetto  1 , Massimo Tommasino  2 , Tarik Gheit  2
Affiliations

Role of human papillomavirus infection in the etiology of vulvar cancer in Italian women

Mario Preti et al. Infect Agent Cancer. .

Abstract

Background: Vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC) is a rare malignancy of the female genital tract. We aimed to determine the mucosal high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV)-attributable fraction of VSCCs from Italian women using multiple markers of viral infections.

Methods: VSCCs and 8 metastatic lymph node samples from 107 Italian women were analyzed by a highly type-specific multiplex genotyping assay for the presence of DNA from 119 different HPVs. Tissues were further analyzed for HPV RNA and for upregulation of the cellular protein p16INK4a.

Results: The rate of mucosal HPV-related tumors defined by viral DNA and RNA positivity was low (7.8%). HPV16 was the most prevalent, followed by 53, 56, and 58. Only five (4.9%) p16INK4a-positive tumors were also positive for both viral DNA and RNA. One (14.3%) metastatic lymph node sample was positive for all three markers. DNA of cutaneous HPVs was detected in only two VSCCs, i.e. genus beta types 5 and 110.

Conclusion: A small proportion of Italian VSCCs is putatively HPV-related, i.e. positive for both viral DNA and RNA of the same type, thus reinforcing the importance of HPV vaccination. Moreover, this study suggests that a direct role of HPV from genus beta and gamma in vulvar carcinogenesis is unlikely.

Keywords: Cancer; Human papillomavirus; Lymph node metastatic tissues; Multiple markers of viral infections; Vulvar squamous cell carcinoma.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interestsR. Ridder is an employee of Roche. All other authors report no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
p16ink4a immunohistochemistry staining. Negative p16ink4a staining (a), and diffuse nuclear and cytoplasmic p16ink4a staining (b) in VSCC cases. Magnification X10
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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