Non-melanoma skin cancer and HPV in persons with albinism: a call for research investment
Cette étude fait le point sur le rôle du papillomavirus humain (HPV) et des ultraviolets dans la survenue des cancers cutanés chez les personnes souffrant d'albinisme, examine, dans le contexte africain, le risque de cancer de la peau chez les personnes infectées par le VIH puis identifie les besoins en matière de recherche sur le HPV et les cancers de la peau hors mélanome
Persons with albinism (PWA) have excessively high risks of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) if not protected from ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposures, a situation which occurs too often amongst affected persons in sub-Saharan Africa. Certain countries in Eastern and Southern Africa, where levels of UV radiation are high, also have amongst the world’s highest national-level prevalence of oculocutaneous albinism. Cutaneous HPV infections, particularly β-HPVs, may be co-factors with UV in skin carcinogenesis. If this is the case, there may be a pivotal potential for NMSC risk reduction via suitable vaccine development in all at-risk populations, and with the greatest individual-level benefit in PWA. With this background, and amidst climate change-induced increases in UV exposures, the research funding and scientific community are urged to prioritise HPV research on skin carcinogenesis in PWA. In the current perspective, we summarise: (1) the putative co-role of HPV with UV in skin carcinogenesis; (2) the possible implications of a potential HPV role in NMSC carcinogenesis; (3) the risks of skin cancer in PWA in the African setting; and (4) the research needs on HPV and NMSC in PWA, including the sensitivities and ethical responsibilities of undertaking such research amongst the PWA community in the African context.
British Journal of Cancer , résumé, 2025