Hpv Virus Hpv Tonsil Cancer Pictures
Human papilloma virus hpv there are many types of hpv.
Hpv virus hpv tonsil cancer pictures. Hpv can infect the mouth and throat and cause cancers of the oropharynx back of the throat including the base of the tongue and tonsils. Hpv is thought to cause 70 of oropharyngeal cancers in the united states. Doctors test for signs of the virus in cells from that area to try to. The largest study of its kind has found some intriguing clues as to why some patients with cancer of the base of the tongue or tonsils caused by the human papillomavirus hpv develop metastatic disease and do poorly despite the generally favorable prognosis for individuals with this virus associated disease.
The only test for an hpv infection is linked to cancer of the cervix the tissue that connects the vagina and the uterus. Only a very small number of people with hpv develop tonsil cancer. It is very common. Hpv is a sexually transmitted infection.
Persistent infection with a cancer linked strain is the big worry. This is called oropharyngeal cancer. Nearly all cases of cervical cancer for instance are caused by hpv. Most people clear hpv within one to two years but hpv infection persists in some people.
Human papilloma virus hpv commonly known as the virus that causes genital warts and cervical cancer in women is increasingly being recognized now as a cause of infections that colonize the back of the mouth throat or oropharynx including the tongue base and tonsils and potentially a cause of cancer of the head and neck.