Abstract
The rates of human papillomavirus-positive oropharyngeal cancer (HPV-OPC) are rising worldwide and in the United States, particularly in rural regions including Appalachia. Rural areas face unique health challenges resulting in higher cancer incidence and mortality rates, and this includes HPV-OPC. The recent advent of highly sensitive liquid biopsies for the non-invasive detection of HPV-OPC recurrence (circulating tumor HPV DNA, HPV ctDNA) has been swiftly adopted as part of surveillance paradigms. Though knowledge gaps persist regarding its use and clinical trials are ongoing, the ease of collection and cost-effectiveness of HPV ctDNA make it more accessible for HPV-OPC survivors than usual surveillance methods of frequent exams and imaging. Herein, we discuss how implementing HPV ctDNA assays in rural regions of the United States provide one poignant example of how liquid biopsies can improve cancer care equity.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2024
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2024.1373905
Funding Information
The author(s) declare that no financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Repository Citation
Windon, Melina and Haring, Catherine, "Human papillomavirus circulating tumor DNA assays as a mechanism for head and neck cancer equity in rural regions of the United States" (2024). Markey Cancer Center Faculty Publications. 450.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/markey_facpub/450
Notes/Citation Information
© 2024 Windon and Haring. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.