Advances in Virus-Associated Head and Neck Cancer

Dear Colleagues,

The incidence of head and neck cancers has escalated in the past few decades. Previously, alcohol and tobacco were considered the primary contributors, but the oncogenic viruses are now also recognized to be a leading cause of these tumors. Viral-associated cancers are an individual group of malignancies with a distinct pathogenesis. There is an urgent need to better understand the biological status of onco-viruses in course of head and neck cancers to aid in prevention, early detection, and treatment.

The human papillomavirus (HPV) is on the list of onco-viruses that cause the head and neck cancers. Multiple HPV genotypes have been identified of which, HPV 16 is the most prevalent. The accurate impact of different HPV genotypes on cancerogenesis remains unclear. Understanding the factors that drive persistence and head and neck cancers development may help to nominate biomarkers that identify individuals at high risk for head and neck cancers and could act as surrogate markers for premalignant lesions.

In summary, prolonged viral infection, especially in conjunction with immunosuppression, likely drives carcinogenesis. Early detection of precancer, including carcinoma-in-situ, will allow diagnosis before tumor spread, allowing safe delivery of monotherapy with less treatment-associated morbidities while maintaining high curability rates. Furthermore, in-depth information on how viral infection progresses to precancer is needed to develop therapies that prevent malignant transformation.

This Special Issue aims to highlight some of the advances achieved in our understanding of virus-associated head and neck cancers from the perspectives of epidemiology, carcinogenesis, development, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Joanna Katarzyna Strzelczyk
Guest Editor

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