Epidemiological studies relating genital herpetic infection to cervical carcinoma.

Epidemiological studies relating genital herpetic infection to cervical carcinoma are reviewed. The high frequency of herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) antibodies in young women (21 years or younger) with cervical carcinoma in situ and in women with dysplasia or carcinoma in situ, matched for various sexual attributes to control women, provide support for a causal relation. However, various laboratory, histopathological, and statistical problems associated with all epidemiological studies do not yet permit a firm conclusion as to the etiological role to the genital virus in cervical carcinogenesis. With the use of herpes-related cancer antigens or purified HSV-2 type-specific antigens, and with the possible development of protective HSV-2 vaccines, the application of epidemiological approaches may be necessary to provide the most finite evidence of causality.