New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)
04/11/2002
By Anne MacLennan
Male circumcision is linked with a reduced risk of both penile human papillomavirus infection and cervical cancer in women with high-risk sexual partners.
Probably the oldest surgical procedure in the world and still one of the most common, male circumcision has long been suspected of curbing risk of cervical cancer in female partners. However, the underlying reason was not clearly understood until certain types of human papillomavirus (HPV) were found to be implicated in the etiology of cancer of the cervix.
Now, a 15-year research project for the International Agency for Research on Cancer has culminated in convincing evidence that prevalence of HPV infection is reduced in circumcised men. The finding helps to clarify the male factor in causation of cervical cancer and provides a biologically plausible explanation for the overall excess risk of this cancer in the female partners of uncircumcised men.
Xavier Castellsague and colleagues from Spain pooled data on 1,913 couples enrolled in seven case-control studies of cervical carcinoma in situ and cervical cancer in five countries on three continents – Europe, South America and Asia.
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