🔬 Human Papillomavirus Type 31: How dangerous is it for the cervix? A new 10-year study provides the answer.
📌 What was studied? Data from 106,450 women undergoing cervical cancer screening in Turkey (2015–2025) were analyzed. From these, 147 patients with confirmed HPV type 31 infection were identified — one of the high-risk oncogenic strains, in addition to the well-known types 16 and 18.
📊 Key Results
- High-grade precancerous cervical changes (CIN2+) were found in 10.2% of all HPV 31 carriers.
- In isolated HPV 31 infection (without other types), the risk of CIN2+ was 6%.
- In co-infection with HPV 16/18, the risk increased to 44.4% — almost 8 times higher.
- Important: 13.9% of women with normal cytology (atypia smear) were found to have CIN2+ on biopsy.
- Two cases of invasive cancer were recorded in patients with only HPV 31 and a normal smear.
🩺 Clinical Conclusions 1️⃣ HPV 31 has its own oncogenic potential, especially in combination with HPV 16/18. 2️⃣ A negative cytology result does not exclude the risk of severe lesions — viral genotype monitoring is necessary. 3️⃣ Isolated HPV 31 carriage may not require urgent colposcopy, but screening programs should consider the viral genotype for risk stratification.
📈 Why is this important to know? The results show that modern screening should include not only cytology but also HPV typing. This allows for the identification of high-risk groups even with normal smears and timely initiation of treatment.
More precise recommendations require multicenter prospective studies.
Source: Ozdemir C.Y., Marangoz B., Ozdemir N., Cicekli N., Abacı B., Arioz D.T. Clinical Outcomes and Risk Implications of HPV 31 Infection: A 10‐Year Retrospective Cohort Study. 2025.
