It has been shown that HPV and p16 status has prognostic value in some HPV-associated cancers. However, studies examining survival in men with penile cancer according to HPV or p16 status are often inconclusive, mainly because of small study populations. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to examine the association between HPV DNA and p16 status and survival in men diagnosed with penile cancer. Multiple electronic databases were searched. Twenty studies were ultimately included and study-specific and pooled hazard ratios (HRs) of overall survival and disease specific survival (DSS) were calculated using a fixed effects model. In the analysis of DSS, we included 649 men with penile cancer tested for HPV (27% were HPV positive) and 404 men tested for p16 expression (47% were p16 positive). The pooled HRHPV of DSS was 0.61 (95%CI: 0.38-0.98), and the pooled HRp16 of DSS was 0.45 (95%CI: 0.30-0.69). In conclusion, men with HPV or p16 positive penile cancer have a significantly more favorable disease specific survival compared to men with HPV or p16 negative penile cancer. These findings point to the possible clinical value of HPV and p16 testing when planning the most optimal management and follow-up strategy.
Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology. 2018 Jul 09 [Epub ahead of print]
Freja Lærke Sand, Christina Louise Rasmussen, Marie Hoffmann Frederiksen, Klaus Kaae Andersen, Susanne Krüger Kjær
Virus, Lifestyle and Genes, Danish Cancer Society Research Center., Statistics and Pharmacoepidemiology, Danish Cancer Society Research Center., Danish Centre for Cancer Research, Danish Cancer Society Research Center., Danish cancer research center, Danish Cancer Society Research Center .