Screening of Papillomavirus Gene Sequences in Oral Cancer Patients in the Federal District, Brazil

The role of HPV in other cancer localization besides the genital apparatus is under scrutiny. Biopsies of oral neoplasms of 26 patients attending the dental clinics of the Regional Hospital of North Wing in Brasilia were analyzed by histopathological methods, screened for HPV genomic sequences utilizing the DIGENE hybrid capture 2 HPV DNA kit, and also, tissue fragments were processed for cell culture. The Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma was diagnosed among 84.6% (22/26) of the patients, localized in the floor of the mouth (5/22); in the inferior lip (2/22); in the tongue (5/22); in the oropharynx (6/22); in the hard palate (3/22), and in the soft palate (1/22). The remaining patients (4/26) had tissue alterations compatible with Herpes Simples Virus infection (1/26), hyperplasia/metaplasia of the epithelial tongue (1/26), reactive lymphoid hyperplasia (1/26) and actinic cheilitis (1/26). The HPV DNA sequences were not detected in any of the patients. Three primary cell lines were obtained from different patients’ tumor biopsies, which were viable during 12 months, showing morphology typical of malignization. Poor socioeconomic conditions and low educational background seems to be associated to OSCC, despite the fact that the majority of the patients were in the range of 60 to 69 years old (34.6%), when it is more frequent the cancer development. It is questioned here if the absence of HPV DNA segments would be influenced by the traditional sex behavior observed among the patients or if after neoplasia establishment, the episomal HPV DNA was lost or cleared in the cell.