HPV vaccine may clear oral warts

  A new case report further shows that a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine may help clear cutaneous common wart lesions and oral squamous cell papillomas.  In a December 2015 article in the Journal of the American Medical Association Dermatology (JAMA Dermatology), John J. Stern, MD, PhD, of Philadelphia University of Pennsylvania, and his colleagues report a case of a 60-year-old patient with chronic verrucous papules on the lips, tongue, and oral mucosa. He first saw the lesions approximately 18 months ago and they recurred after multiple surgical excisions. Biopsy showed squamous cell papilloma and DNA sequencing showed positive for HPV-32. The patient then received the quadrivalent HPV vaccine, and within 4 weeks of the first dose, the papillomas showed improvement. After the second dose, all of the patient’s papillomas were completely gone. He went on to receive a third dose, and at one year, the patient reported no recurrent lesions.  The researchers conducted a literature review and found eight reports of HPV quadrivalent vaccine for common warts. Most patients responded rapidly several weeks after vaccination.  Thus, the HPV vaccine has the potential to clear oral condyloma.