High Levels of FGF11 Correlate with Poor Survival in Patients with Human Papillomavirus (HPV)-Positive Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

SIMPLE SUMMARY: To better identify patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive oropharyngeal cancer (OPSCC) and a poor prognosis after treatment, we compared the gene expression in tumours from patients with a poor or a favourable prognosis in a case-control setting. The results were thereafter validated in two separate cohorts on the RNA and protein levels. High RNA or protein expression of FGF11 was correlated with a poor patient survival in all three cohorts. Taken together, the data imply that FGF11 may play a major role in the prognosis of patients and that FGF11 could serve as a prognostic marker in HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer. ABSTRACT: Human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) is associated with a favourable prognosis. It has therefore been suggested that treatment should be individualized and separated by HPV status. However, additional prognostic markers are still needed before treatment can be individualized for this patient group. For this purpose, all patients diagnosed with HPV and p16-positive OPSCC in Stockholm 2000–2009, identified as having a partial/nonresponse to treatment and having viable tumour cells in their neck specimen with material available were categorized as cases. These were matched to controls (complete responders), and the differences in the gene expression were analysed. Two separate verification cohorts were identified including patients with HPV- and p16-positive OPSCC, and the data from the case-control study were verified by qPCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC) in the respective cohorts. A separation of gene expression in correlation with survival was observed in the case-control study, and FGF11 expression was identified as significantly differently expressed between the two groups. The prognostic role of FGF11 was validated in the two cohorts on the RNA and protein levels, respectively. Taken together, our findings suggest that FGF11 may indicate a poor prognosis in HPV-positive OPSCC and may serve as a prognostic biomarker.