Pre-diagnostic dynamic HPV16 IgG seropositivity and risk of oropharyngeal cancer: Methodological issues

We were interested to read the paper authored by Anderson and colleagues that was published in the journal of Oral Oncology in October 2017 [1]. The authors aimed to examine the association of HPV16 antibodies (Abs) and oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) risk in sera obtained prior to clinical diagnosis. They found that Abs to E2 were strongly associated with cases 0–2 years pre- diagnosis (odds ratio (OR): 150.1; 95% confidence interval (CI): 27.4–1040.0) and HPV status (OR: 35.6; 95% CI: 8.7–200.0). Although their study makes valuable contribution to the area, some methodological issues need to be taken into account.

http://ift.tt/2mUOsTl