Abstract
To study human papilloma virus (HPV) infection in the uterine cervix of patients with cancer or autoimmune disease and normal women, we performed cervical or vaginal smear tests and detected the virus using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. The subjects consisted of 100 women aged 20-86 years, who were classified into four groups based on their past history; a cervical cancer group (n = 6), a group with other cancer (n = 36), an autoimmune disease group (n = 9), and a control group (n = 49). The mean age of the patients with other cancers (50.3±11.3 years) was significantly higher than that of control group (42.0±13.5 years; P < 0.01). Only one of the 42 patients with HPV infection had a cervical smear above class III and all 53 patients in the HPV-negative group were below class II. The rate of HPV infection was not significantly associated with the degree of uterine cervical smear findings. The HPV positive rates in each group were 66.7 %, 44.4 %, 55.6 %, and 34.7 %, respectively. The present findings suggested that careful follow up of HPV infection in patients with autoimmune disease or cancer may be helpful in screening for uterine cervical cancer. [Adv Obstet Gynecol 51(4); 344 - 347, 1999 (H11.7)]
