Human Papillomavirus Type 16 in Sudanese Patients with Upper Respiratory and Digestive Tract Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Abstract

Introduction: HPV was detected in cervical and oral cancers; however, there is no study covering its presence in upper respiratory and digestive tract squamous cell carcinoma (URDT SCCs) in Sudan. This study aimed at finding a relation (if any) between HPV type 16 and URDT SCCs in Sudanese patients and to study the histopathology of these tumours. Materials and Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was done in which ninety five formalin- fixed paraffin embedded tissues of URDT SCCs were used for DNA extraction (Real Genomics, Genomic DNA extraction Kit, Mini) and conventional polymerase chain reaction to detect the presence of HPV type 16 in those tissues. Microsoft Excel and Statistics Package of Social Sciences (SPSS) were used for data analysis. Person Chi-square test for statistical significance (P value), with the 95% confidence level and confidence intervals was used. Results: There were forty seven (49.5%) males, and forty eight (50.5%) females. HPV DNA type 16 was detected in 10.53% of cases. The relation between the site of URDT SCCs and the gender as well as the site and the degree of differentiation was found to be statistically significant (P = 0.035 and 0.009 respectively); how- ever, there is no significant relation between those sites and the age categories that were studied (P = 0.097). Conclusion: HPV type 16 is unlikely to be a causative agent in URDT SCCs, but further studies are needed to exclude it as a causative agent of these cancers or to confirm the presence of other types in Sudanese patients.