Frequency of Genetic and Epigenetic Alterations of p14ARF and p16INK4A in Head and Neck Cancer in a Hungarian Population

Occurrence of genetic and epigenetic alterations affecting p14ARF and p16INK4A were investigated in tumour samples of 37 oral (OSCC) and 28 laryngeal squamous cell cancer (LSCC) patients, and compared to exfoliated buccal epithelial cells of 68 healthy controls. Presence of deletions and mutations/polymorphisms affecting exons were examined using sequencing. Methylation status of promoters was assessed by methylation-specific PCR. Chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests were used to compare frequency of events. Exon deletions were found in four controls, one OSCC and 22 LSCC patients; the latter significantly differed from controls (p?p?=?0.043 and p?=?0.001, respectively) compared to the control group. In summary, exon deletion may be important in LSCC, while promoter methylation was relatively frequent in both patient groups.