Charting new paths in head and neck cancer

Thanks to successful public health campaigns that raised awareness and shifted the landscape of societal norms around smoking, tobacco-related cancers of the head and neck have dramatically declined. However, the American Cancer Society (ACS) reports a troubling new trend. Head and neck cancers are on the rise after years of decline due to the human papillomavirus (HPV).

“HPV explains the precipitous rise in the number of head and neck cancers independent of smoking or heavy drinking, as it has been associated in years past. HPV-driven oropharynx cancer is the new face of head and neck cancer. It's one of the few cancers that are actually still increasing in incidence,” reports Holsinger.

According to the ACS, deaths from HPV-associated cancers of the tongue, tonsil, and oropharynx are increasing by about 2% annually.https://med.stanford.edu/cancer/about/news/holsinger.html