The following is a summary of “Circulating tumor-tissue modified HPV DNA testing in the clinical evaluation of patients at risk for HPV-positive oropharynx cancer: The IDEA-HPV study,” published in the December 2023 issue of Oncology by Batool, et al.

For a prospective exploratory cohort study. Researchers sought to assess the potential of circulating tumor tissue-modified viral (TTMV)-HPV DNA plasma testing as a diagnostic aid for the early detection of Human Papillomavirus (HPV)-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas (OPSCCs). Between March 2021 and October 2022, 39 subjects with unexplained signs or symptoms suggestive of high-risk HPV-positive OPSCC were recruited. 

Circulating TTMV-HPV DNA testing was performed, and the results were shared with subjects and treating clinicians. Clinicians were surveyed about the perceived clinical utility of the test. Results showed that TTMV-HPV DNA was detected in 2 out of 39 subjects, both of whom were subsequently diagnosed with HPV-positive OPSCC. These cases were identified in white men aged 70–80 years presenting with a neck mass. One subject with undetectable TTMV-HPV DNA was also diagnosed with HPV-positive OPSCC through excisional neck mass biopsy. 

Other diagnoses included 3 HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinomas and 4 other malignancies. Clinicians perceived the testing as helpful in clinical decision-making for 68% of subjects and considered it useful for similar future patients in 86% of cases. The study suggested that circulating TTMV-HPV DNA testing is feasible and holds potential as a diagnostic aid for HPV-positive OPSCC in conjunction with standard clinical workup. However, they emphasized the need for further studies to evaluate its utility and acknowledge its limitations, as a negative test does not necessarily rule out the presence of disease.

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1368837523002804