Nice, France: Patients with cancer of the throat caused by the Human
Papilloma virus (HPV+) have a better prognosis than those who are
negative for the virus (HPV-). Now, for the first time, researchers
have shown with convincing evidence that a group of patients with HPV+
cancer of the oropharynx (the part of the throat located behind the
mouth, that makes up the region of the tonsils and the back part of the
tongue where it connects to the swallowing part of the throat), can be
cured in some cases even after disease has spread to distant organs in
the body, like the lungs.
"This research has shown that metastatic HPV+ OPC patients who
receive active treatment can survive considerably longer than those who
did not receive treatment. One of the reasons patients with metastatic
disease do not receive aggressive treatment is due to the physician and
patient's perception that this is an incurable state. We hope that
these results will motivate researchers to optimize management
strategies for these patients. This will not only help to produce a
better quality of life and a return to work for them, but also reduce
the cost to healthcare systems," Dr Huang will say.
"We also hope that our study may trigger research to explore
cost-effective methods for the early detection of metastases. Optimizing
and tailoring surveillance strategies for HPV+ patients are also
important. For example, our research has shown that the surveillance
period should be longer than the traditional two-year window, due to the
possibility of later onset of metastases."
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