Evaluation of the role of human papillomavirus in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma in Belgium

Objective: To evaluate the putative role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in t he aetiology of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) in Belgium. Methods: The frequency of RPV infection was determined using HPV DNA PCRamp lification with L1 consensus primers MY09-MY11 able to recognise about 40 d ifferent HPV types, on twenty-one formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded oeso phageal squamous cells carcinomas. Nineteen samples of histologically norma l epithelium from the surgical margins of the OSCC specimens and five sampl es from normal oesophagus obtained at autopsy served as negative controls. Results : We found only one HPV positive tumour (4,8%) out of the 21 OSCC c ases. All the normal epithelium controls remained negative. Conclusions: Our data are in agreement with those previously published, sug gesting that HPV infection only plays a minor role in the pathogenesis of o esophageal squamous cells carcinoma in West-European countries.