Appraisal of the AJCC 8th edition pathologic staging modifications for HPV−positive oropharyngeal cancer, a study of the National Cancer Data Base

The American Joint Commission on Cancer (AJCC) 7th edition staging manual for oropharyngeal cancer was designed before high-risk human papillomavirus positive oropharyngeal cancer (HPV+ OPSCC) became preeminent, an entity that's now expected to surpass incidence of HPV cervical cancer by 2020 [1]. As such, the 7th edition staging paradigm progressively lost its prognostic ability as HPV+ OPSCC boasts far better survival and treatment sensitivity than HPV−negative disease. Moreover, recent studies have demonstrated its prognostic inadequacy [2–5].

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