Single-Center Analysis of Human Papillomavirus Infection and P16INK4A Expression among Korean Patients with Penile Cancer

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the statuses of P16INK4A expression and human papillomavirus (HPV) infection among patients with penile cancer at a single Korean institution. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fourteen patients with penile cancer at our center were retrospectively identified and their clinicopathological data were analyzed. The patients' HPV and P16INK4A expression status (a known tumor suppressor protein) were tested using genotyping with a DNA chip assay and immunohistochemical staining, respectively. The results regarding HPV status were compared to those from another Asian study. RESULTS: The mean age at diagnosis was 60 years (range: 34–86 years). The median tumor size was 3.0 cm (range: 0.6–4.7 cm). Ten tumors were located on the penile glans. Five patients tested positive for HPV DNA (5/14, 36%) and all cases involved HPV type 16 (5/5, 100%). Positive expression of P16INK4A was observed in 6 cases (6/14, 43%). Among the HPV positive cases, 80% of cases (4/5) were also positive for P16INK4A. The prevalence of HPV infection in our study (36%) was higher than in a previous Asian study (23%). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to evaluate the prevalence of HPV infection and P16INK4A expression among patients with penile cancer at a single Korean institution. The prevalence of HPV (36%) was slightly higher than the results from a previous Asian study. Additional multi-center studies are needed to better understand penile cancer in Korea and to identify biomarkers that can determine high-risk cases and predict their prognosis.