Correlation of transcriptionally active human papillomavirus status with the clinical and molecular profiles of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas

Background To examine the molecular profiles of human papillomavirus (HPV)‐positive and HPV‐negative head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs), expression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), phospho‐EGFR dimers, hypoxia markers, and cancer stem cell markers were evaluated. Methods HPV‐status was confirmed using RNA‐ISH. Immunohistochemical data of biomarker expression levels were analyzed using the Mann‐Whitney U test. The clinical outcomes and biomarker expression in the HPV‐positive (n = 25), matched HPV‐negative (n = 49), and p16‐positive/HPV‐negative (n = 20) subgroups were comparatively analyzed. Results HPV was detected in 25 (5.8%) cases and was significantly associated with favorable outcomes. HPV‐positive tumors exhibited lower membrane expression of EGFR, pEGFRY1068, pEGFRY1173, CD44, CD44v6, and CD98hc than HPV‐negative and p16‐positive tumors. The expression of HIF1α, CA9, ALDH1A1, and SOX2 was not significantly associated with HPV‐status. The clinical outcomes and biomarker expression levels were similar between the HPV‐negative and p16‐positive HNSCC. Conclusion HPV‐positive HNSCC exhibited distinct molecular profile compared to HPV‐negative and p16‐positive HNSCC. The clinical and molecular profiles were similar between p16‐positive and HPV‐negative subgroups.