Stomatológ 2025, 35(2):6-12

Human papillomavirus associated with oral squamous cell carcinomas

Janíčková, M., Hvizdoš, D., Jozefík, M., Sudzinová, K., Kalmanová, S., Juríček, R., Hrivnák, D.

Klinika stomatológie a maxilofaciálnej chirurgie, Jesseniovej lekárskej fakulty v Martine, Univerzity Komenského v Bratislave a Univerzitnej nemocnice v Martine (KSaMCH JLF UK a UNM)

Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) are the sixth most common cancer worldwide, with approximately
700,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths annually. In recent decades, infection with high-risk types of HPV (high-risk,
HR-HPV) has been linked to the etiology of oropharyngeal and oral squamous cell carcinomas (OPSCC and OSCC).
It is now also considered an important prognostic biomarker. HPV-associated tumors represent a specific subgroup of OPSCC and OSCC that differs from HPVindependent tumors in terms of clinical characteristics, morphology, biological behavior, response to treatment, and prognosis. HPV is present in approximately 24% of HNSCC cases worldwide, 60% of OPSCC cases, and 10% to 20% of OSCC cases (1,2).
In HPV-positive tumors, the disease often occurs at a younger age in patients who do not abuse tobacco or alcohol. Although HPV-associated tumors are generally associated with a better prognosis, smoking has been shown to significantly reduce this advantage. Smoking promotes genetic instability in tumor cells and increases the risk of recurrence and death (4).
Published data suggest that HPV tumor status is a strong and consistent determinant of higher survival rates. The higher survival rate in patients with HPV-positive carcinoma is partly due to greater local and regional control, reflecting higher intrinsic sensitivity to external radiotherapy or better radiosensitization when chemotherapy is used (6).
We retrospectively evaluated patients with OSCC treated at KSaMCH JLF UK and UNM between January 2015 and October 2025. We determined how many of the total number of diagnosed and treated patients were tested for HPV and how many of them were HPV positive. We compared the group with HPV-associated and HPVindependent OSCC.

Keywords: oral squamous cell carcinoma, high-risk HPV types, smoking, prognosis

Published: January 1, 2026  Show citation