Abstract
Objectives:
High-risk human papilloma virus (HPV) infection is associated with carcinogenesis in oropharyngeal squamous carcinoma (OSCC), and patients with HPV (+) tumors have significantly favorable prognosis. However, the reason for this good clinical outcome has not been revealed. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) causes aggressiveness of cancer cells. We investigated the expression of the EMT markers and analyzed their correlation with HPV status and prognosis to detect the reason HPV (+) OSCCs respond to treatment.
Methods:
Eighty patients with OSCC were examined in this study. All high-risk HPV infection were determined with the multiplex PCR kit from each formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded pre-treatment sample. We performed immunohistochemical staining for E-cadherin and vimentin and evaluated the results. Expressions of the markers were graded, and the correlation with TNM stages and prognosis was correlated.
Results:
Twenty-three of the 80 OSCC tissues were shown to be HPV(+). The 5-year survival rate for patients with HPV (+) tumors (79.1%) was higher than for those with HPV (-) tumors (50.7%). Low e-cadherin expression rate was 56.5% in HPV (+) and 19.2 % in HPV (-).( P = 0.019) E-cadherin expression was not correlated with survival rate in either HPV (+) or (-). Vimentin expression was correlated with N-stage in HPV (-).
Conclusions:
HPV(+) OSCC originally lost their epithelial cell phenotype compared with HPV(-). The EMT enhances aggressive behavior in HPV (-) OSCC but not in HPV (+).
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