The prognostic significance of p16 overexpression in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma: implications for treatment strategies and future clinical studies

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the sixth common cancer worldwide, with almost 650 000 new cases and 350 000 deaths each year [1]. This group of cancers represent a rather heterogeneous cohort of neoplasms originating from the oral cavity, oropharynx, hypopharynx and larynx. In the last decades, major progress has been made in the treatment of HNSCC, including the addition of concomitant chemotherapy to radiation [2], the use of altered fractionation schedules [3] and, more recently, the use of taxane-based induction chemotherapy [4].