Antibodies to herpes simplex virus (types 1 and 2) in Jamaican patients with cervical dysplasia and neoplasia

ABSTRACT

Antibody activity to Herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 and 2 was measured in sera from women with cervical dysplasia (19 cases), squamous-cell carcinoma, stages 0-4 (54 cases), other genital tumours (15 cases) and matched controls (60 cases) by the indirect immunofluorescent (IFA) test. The frequency of HSV-2 antibody activity was significantly greater in women with cervical cancer than in those with other genital tumours and in matched controls (p<0.05). No significant difference was observed for the HSV-2 antibody activity between women with cervical dysplasia and matched controls. The mean antibody titres to HSV-1 and HSV-2 were significantly higher in cancer cases than the respective titres in control groups (p<0.05). The cervical cancer cases were also analysed according to their clinical stage (Stages 0-4), and there was no significant variation either in frequency of antibody activity, or mean HSV-2 antibody titres. These preliminary findings suggest that there may be an association between HSV-2 and squamous cell carcinoma of uterine cervix in Jamaican women but further studies are required for meaningful conclusions to be drawn (AU)