Body-Mass Index (BMI) and early stage as predictors of papillomavirus infection in H&N cancers

The presence of HPV/p16 is associated with better prognosis in head and neck (H&N) tumors, yet less is known regarding individual patient factors that may affect the likelihood of HPV presence in their tumors. Previous data evaluated the correlation between BMI and HPV in H&N cancer has been inconsistent. Obesity has been linked to better prognosis in H&N cancer, but the associated with HPV upon presentation has not been explored. The purpose of this study was to determine factors that increase the likelihood of HPV infection upon presentation among H&N cancer patients.