2024-02-12 07:00:46

The fourth most common female cancer in the world, cervical cancer is linked to long-lasting infection with viruses from the human papillomavirus (HPV) family. What if smoking increased the risk of persistent HPV infection and therefore the risk of cervical cancer? This is what the French Society of Colposcopy and Cervico-Vaginal Pathology (SFCPCV) suggested during a recent press conference. We take stock.

Link between cervical cancer and human papillomaviruses

Fourth most common female cancer in the world, cervical cancer designates a tumor located in the uterine mucosa. Responsible each year in France for 3000 new cases and around 1000 deaths, this pathology is almost 100% attributable to long-term infection with viruses of the human papillomavirus family (HPV).

To know ! Of the twenty human papillomaviruses (HPV) causing cervical cancer identified to date by scientists, two are the most frequently involved: HPV16 and HPV18.

In most cases of HPV human papillomavirus infections, the affected person’s immune defenses manage to eliminate the virus within two years following contamination. But sometimes, the infection persists and leads to the development of cancer cells.

To know ! Vaccination once morest the papillomavirus prevents two thirds of cervical cancers. But be careful, it does not replace cervical cancer screening by cervical smear. The smear remains essential from the age of 25, whether you are vaccinated or not. Only the smear makes it possible to detect the presence of an anomaly in the cervix following infection by HPV viruses and to treat it quickly.

Read also – Screening and vaccination in the prevention of cervical cancer

Role of tobacco on human papillomavirus replication

There is also a another factor in the occurrence of cervical cancer: smoking. The latter is in fact at the origin of several effects promoting the risks linked to papillomavirus (HPV).

It must be said that out of the thousands of chemical components found in the tobacco of a cigarette, sixty are carcinogenic, including:

The benzopyrene which increases viral load (i.e. the amount of virus). There nicotine which impairs the entire immune response (cellular immunity, humoral immunity, local immunity and general immunity).

To know ! Women have a greater susceptibility than men to carcinogenic compounds in tobacco.

Furthermore, according to a recent study, tobacco increases the risks associated with HPV by reducing the speed at which the virus is eliminated by the body (also called clearance). Clear, smoking increases the persistence of the papillomavirus in the body which will eliminate it less quickly than in a non-smoking person. It is also estimated that women who smoke are 50% less likely to eliminate the virus. As the body is more exposed to it, the risk of developing precancerous lesions warning of cervical cancer is increased. And this risk is proportional to the duration, frequency and quantity of tobacco smoked.

A study carried out on 3,833 women who smoked or were exposed to passive smoking demonstrated that tobacco increased the risk of HPV infection by 32%. This means that a person exposed to smoking (whether active or passive) has a 32% greater risk of developing an HPV infection than a person not exposed. And this excess risk reaches 70% for people who actively smoke.

Read also – HPV vaccination coverage falls in France

Smoking and increased risk of cervical cancer

For the vice-president of the French Society of Colposcopy and Cervicovaginal Pathology, It is important to quit smoking to reduce the risk of developing cervical cancer. A smoker with precancerous lesions should therefore logically be referred to a tobacco consultation to begin a cessation process. Especially since the body’s ability to eliminate the papillomavirus increases as soon as the patient stops smoking. But in a context where a quarter of the French population smokes, it seems essential to offer smokers real support in their cessation project.

According to another study, smoking is even more harmful in people who started smoking before coming into contact with HPV. The lesions are in fact more numerous in them. Hence the interest in carry out an effective prevention campaign among young people and also offer them support for weaning. The goal is to help them stop smoking as quickly as possible.

Read also – Alcohol and tobacco, responsible for half of all cancers!

Written by Déborah L., Doctor in Pharmacy

Sources

– Cervical cancer: a close link between tobacco and HPV. www.lequotidiendumedecin.fr. Accessed February 12, 2024.
– Papillomavirus: how tobacco increases the risk of cervical cancer. www.societe-colposcopie.com. Accessed February 12, 2024.
– Cervical cancer and papillomavirus. www.pasteur.fr. Accessed February 12, 2024.
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