Human papillomavirus ‘causes prostate cancer’

Some prostate cancers are ‘highly likely’ to be caused by human papillomavirus, according to a review of research.

Generic pic of a scientist using a microscope. Picture: Supplied

Some prostate cancers are ­“highly likely” to be caused by human papillomavirus, according to a review of research.

HPV is a common infection, usually spread during sex, and alread­y known to cause most cases of cervical cancer.

Boys and girls at secondary schools in Australia and Britain are routinely offered a vaccin­ation against HPV when they are aged between 11 and 13.

About eight in 10 people are infected with HPV at some point in their lives. While there are hundreds of types of the virus, about 13 are linked to cancers including­ cervical, penile, and mouth and throat cancers.

For the new paper, published in the journal Infectious Agents and Cancer, researchers from the University of NSW reviewed 26 studies on HPV and its link to prostate cancer. They found HPV types 16 and 18, responsible for most cases of cervical cancer, had been found in normal, benign and malignant prostate tissues.

Professor Wendy Glenn, who led the research, said: “Across several studies, conducted in a wide range of countries and using different methods to identify HPVs, we found reasonably consistent­ evidence that high-risk HPVs are significantly more prevalent in prostate cancers than in normal prostate tissues and benign prostate tissues.”

The authors found that in countries where deaths from cervical cancer were high, deaths from prostate cancer were also high. The reverse was true for countries with low death rates from cervical cancer.

They said: “Although HPVs are only one of many pathogens that have been identified in prostate cancer, they are the only infectiou­s pathogen which can be prevented by vaccination. A causal role for HPVs in prostate cancer is highly likely.”

Simon Grieveson, head of research­ funding at Prostate Cancer UK, said the study was interestin­g but more research was needed before considering whether HPV vaccinations would be of any benefit in preventi­ng prostate cancer.

The Times