Association of Human Parvovirus B۱۹ with Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma and its Relationship with Tumor Staging and Pathologic Features

Background: Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most prevalent form of thyroid cancer. In some studies, parvovirus B۱۹ (PVB۱۹) infection was involved in the pathogenesis of thyroid diseases such as Graves’ disease, Hashimoto thyroiditis, and thyroid cancer. PVB۱۹ induces chronic inflammation in thyroid, which can lead to carcinogenesis through the effect of inflammatory mediators. The association of PVB۱۹ with PTC tumorigenesis is still a matter of controversy. We evaluated the correlation of PVB۱۹ with PTC and, for the first time, pathologic features. Method: This cross-sectional retrospective study focused on the thyroid specimens of ۸۲ patients with PTC and ۷۷ patients with benign thyroid nodules. We conducted the present study from March ۲۰۱۴ to November ۲۰۱۷ in the hospitals affiliated with Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. We evaluated the presence of PVB۱۹ DNA by nested polymerase chain reaction method in PTC, adjacent non-malignant tissues, and benign thyroid nodules. PVB۱۹ positivity was also compared between PTC and two other groups. We further investigated the association of pathologic features and tumor staging with PVB۱۹ positivity. Results: Of the patients, ۸۱% were female. We detected PVB۱۹ positivity in ۹.۸% of PTC specimens and ۰.۰۱ of adjacent non-malignant tissues (P=۰.۰۱۶). None of the benign thyroid nodule specimens had PVB۱۹ DNA, and they were significantly different from PTC specimens (P=۰.۰۰۷). There was no significant correlation between PVB۱۹ positivity and tumor stages (P=۰.۹۸۸) and histologic types (P=۰.۵۶۰). Conclusion: This research, similar to some other studies, showed a significant association between PTC and PVB۱۹ positivity. For the first time, we showed that no significant relationship existed between PVB۱۹ positivity and tumor stages and histologic types. Further investigations are needed to evaluate the relationship between this virus and PTC.

Keywords:

Human parvovirus B۱۹ , Papillary thyroid carcinoma , Thyroid cancer