BACKGROUND:
Data on human papillomavirus (HPV) prevalence and survival rates among HPV-infected women are scarce in Saudi Arabia.
OBJECTIVE:
Assess the prevalence of HPV genotypes in cervical biopsy specimens and its effect on survival over a 10-year timeframe.
DESIGN:
Retrospective, cross-sectional.
SETTINGS:
Saudi referral hospital.
PATIENTS AND METHODS:
Cervical biopsy specimens were collected from women aged 23-95 years old who underwent HPV detection, HPV genotyping, p16
INK4a
expression measurement using immunohistochemistry. Kaplan-Meier plots were constructed to analyze overall survival rates.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:
Survival rate of HPV-positive cervical cancer patients.
SAMPLE SIZE:
315 cervical biopsy specimens.
RESULTS:
HPV was detected in 96 patients (30.4%): 37.3% had cervical cancer; 14.2% cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) III, 4.1% CIN II, and 17.0% CIN I. A significant association was found between HPV presence and cervical cancer (χ
2
=56.78;
P
<.001). The expression of p16
INK4a
was a significant predictor of survival: women who had p16
INK4a
overexpression had poorer survival rates (multivariate Cox regression, hazard ratio, 3.2; 95% CI, 1.1–8.8). In addition, multivariate models with HPV status and cervical cancer diagnosis showed that HPV status was a significant predictor of survival: HPV-positive women had better survival rates than HPV-negative women.
CONCLUSION:
These findings suggest that implementing cervical and HPV screening programs may decrease cervical cancer rates and improve survival rates of women in Saudi Arabia.
LIMITATION:
Single center and small sample size.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST:
None.
Prognostic impact of human papillomavirus infection on cervical dysplasia, cancer, and patient survival in Saudi Arabia: A 10-year retrospective analysis
