Prevalence of Human Papilloma Virus in Patients With Colorectal Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is considered as one of the most common carcinogenic viruses in humans throughout the world and is mostly associated with gynecologic malignancies. However, it is also one of the environmental factors that is involved in colorectal cancer (CRC).

A meta-analysis was performed to investigate the prevalence of HPV infection in patients suffering from the CRC.

The frequency of the HPV in patients with CRC was studied from 2001 to 2016. To this end, several databases were reviewed, including PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Iranmedex, and the Scientific Information Database. Then, the analysis was done by Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (V2.0, Biostat) software. Considering heterogeneity between different studies, the random effect model was used and then the results were checked with Cochran’s Q-statistic.

The meta-analysis revealed that the frequency of HPV infection in patients with CRC was 33.7% (a 95% CI of 28.4-39.5). The additional stratified analysis also showed that HPV infection in CRC patients was more widespread in European countries compared to Asian and American countries.

The high rate of HPV infection is a major concern in sexually transmitted diseases around the world, therefore, controlling high-risk behaviors, vaccination, screening, and HPV subtyping can be useful in managing HPV infections.