# HPV status (HPV-positive / HPV-negative)

Source: https://onco.cc/terms/hpv-status/  
OnCo record `hpv-status` (Term). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Whether a cancer is caused by human papillomavirus. HPV-positive throat cancers are a different, far more curable disease than smoking-related ones, and the virus's DNA in blood can track the cancer.

## Summary

Persistent high-risk HPV (types 16 and 18 mainly) causes virtually all cervical cancer and rising shares of oropharyngeal, anal, vulval and penile cancers; p16 immunohistochemistry is the surrogate marker in the oropharynx. HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer has 3-year survival above 80% and its own AJCC staging, so trials test de-escalating radiotherapy dose or omitting chemotherapy, none of which has yet succeeded in a randomised trial. Circulating HPV DNA (ctHPV) detects recurrence months before imaging. HPV vaccination and HPV-based cervical screening are the route to eliminating cervical cancer.

## Fields

- Kind: Term
- Last checked: 2026-09-09
- Also known as: HPV-positive; HPV positive; HPV-negative; HPV negative; HPV-driven; HPV-associated; HPV-related; high-risk HPV; HPV16; HPV 16; ctHPV; ctHPV DNA; HPV ctDNA; HPV DNA

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_papillomavirus_infection
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_papillomavirus_infection

## Connected records

- terms: [Circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA)](https://onco.cc/terms/ctdna/), [Dysplasia (pre-cancerous change)](https://onco.cc/terms/dysplasia/), [Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in cancer](https://onco.cc/terms/ebv-term/), [Extranodal extension (ENE)](https://onco.cc/terms/extranodal-extension/), [Head and neck subsites (oral cavity, oropharynx, larynx)](https://onco.cc/terms/head-neck-subsites/), [Squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/terms/squamous-cell-carcinoma/)
- cancers: [Anal high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (precursor)](https://onco.cc/cancers/anal-hsil-precursor/), [Cervical cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/cervical/), [Early cervical cancer and fertility-sparing surgery](https://onco.cc/cancers/early-cervical-cancer/), [Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/head-and-neck/), [Localised penile cancer (organ-confined, node-negative)](https://onco.cc/cancers/localised-penile-cancer/), [Nasal cavity and paranasal sinus cancers (including esthesioneuroblastoma)](https://onco.cc/cancers/sinonasal/), [Node-positive and metastatic penile cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/node-positive-penile-cancer/), [Penile cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/penile/), [Vaginal adenocarcinoma (including DES-associated clear cell adenocarcinoma)](https://onco.cc/cancers/vaginal-adenocarcinoma/), [Vaginal cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/vaginal/), [Vaginal squamous cell carcinoma (HPV-associated)](https://onco.cc/cancers/vaginal-squamous-cell-carcinoma/)
- fronts: [Diagnostics & Biomarkers](https://onco.cc/fronts/diagnostics/), [Prevention & Risk](https://onco.cc/fronts/prevention/)
- technologies: [HPV & HBV vaccination](https://onco.cc/technologies/hpv-vaccine/), [Visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) for cervical screening](https://onco.cc/technologies/via-cervical-screening/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/hpv-status.json