Human papillomavirus and bladder cancer: literature review and meta-analysis

The aim of this study was to evaluate data over the past 25 years to assess the prevalence of the virus in patients with bladder cancer and to evaluate the association between human papillomavirus (HPV) and bladder cancer risk. Major databases were searched for published studies from October 1995 to May 2022. The present study evaluated the prevalence of HPV in patients with bladder cancer and the prevalence according to patients' ethnicity. The incidence of HPV in bladder cancer patients varies widely, ranging from complete absence of the virus in tissues to 64.6%. The meta-analysis was performed using Meta-Essentials_1.5 software. Begg’s and Egger’s methods were used to assess publication bias. Cochran’s Q test was used to assess heterogeneity and the I2 index was employed for calculating the variation in the pooled estimations. A weak association of HPV infection with the risk of bladder cancer was found. The risk of bladder cancer with HPV infection has clear ethnic characteristics and is statistically significant in Arabs and Asians.