Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Study Suggests Link Between HPV, Skin Cancer

(HealthDay News) -- The ubiquitous virus linked to cervical, vaginal and throat cancers may also raise the risk of developing squamous cell carcinoma, the second most common form of skin cancer, a new study suggests.

The risk from human papillomavirus (HPV) seen in a new study was even higher if people are taking drugs such as glucocorticoids to suppress the immune system, according to new research by an international team led by Dr. Margaret Karagas of Dartmouth Medical School in Lebanon, N.H.

But all of this does not necessarily mean that HPV causes squamous cell carcinoma, one expert said.

"That's a fairly big leap to me," said Dr. Stephen Mandy, a member of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery and clinical professor of dermatology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. "It's perfectly possible that people with high titers [blood levels] of HPV antibodies also have skin cancer for other reasons."

There are vaccines already in use (such as Gardasil) that protect against the HPV strains that cause cervical cancer. But experts said that, given that there are more than 100 types of HPV, vaccines' protective ability is unlikely to translate to another disease. Read more...

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