No association between human papillomavirus and prostate cancer

Abstract

Background: The role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in prostate cancer is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between HPV and prostate cancer. Methods: In this case-control study, 133 paraffin embedded and formalin fixed prostate tissues were collected from the archive of pathology laboratory, Tohid Hospital, Sanandaj, Iran. A total of 58 tissues with malignant tumors (cases) and 75 tissues with benign prostatic hyperplasia (controls) were selected. Sections with thickness of 7 µm to 10 µm were prepared by sterile microtome blade. Sections were deparaffinized, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was extracted, and stored at-20 °C. To detect HPV infection, PCR test was conducted on all samples, using HPV general primers. Also, to detect high-risk HPV genotypes, PCR test was performed, using genotype specific primers. Genotypes of HPV positive samples were confirmed by sequencing. Results: In the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test using HPV general primers, 3 (2.3%) of the 133 samples were positive. Using genotype specific primers, HPV-18 was positive in 2 (3.4%) of 58 cases and 1 (1.3%) of the 75 controls. The difference of HPV infection between 2 groups was not significant (P = 0.41). Other high-risk genotypes, HPV-16, HPV-31, and HPV-33 were not found in both groups. Conclusions: The findings of this study do not support the role of HPV in prostate cancer. So, there may be other factors involved in carcinogenesis of the prostate cancer in our population. It is necessary to confirm this result by different detection methods and in other populations.