Papillomaviruses

This volume offers a complete description of the current state of biology concerning the papillomavirus. It evaluates the carcinogenic risk to humans posed by infection with human papillomaviruses (HPVs). To date, more than 70 HPV types have been identified, of which over 15 have been reported in cervical cancer biopsies. Worldwide, cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women, approximately 500,000+ new cases are diagnosed each year. This book also considers the possible involvement of HPV infection in cancers at other sites of the human body.This volume evaluates the carcinogenic risk to humans posed by infection with human papillomaviruses (HPVs). To date, more than 70 HPV types have been identified, of which over 15 have been reported in cervical cancer biopsies. Worldwide, cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women. This book also considers the possible involvement of HPV infection in cancers at other sites of the human body.The papillomaviruses have emerged as the best understood viruses that cause cancer in humans. This volume reviews the remarkable confluence of science, medicine, and public health that recently culminated in the approval of vaccines that prevent many human papillomavirus infections, the first vaccines specifically designed to prevent human cancer. Basic laboratory studies of viral DNA replication, gene expression, protein function, and virus-host interactions have provided fundamental insights into these important processes. Most importantly, human papillomavirus infection has been shown to be a crucial event in the development of several human cancers, most notably cervical cancer, a leading cause of cancer death in women. The Papillomaviruses is an ideal book for scientists, professionals, clinicians, and graduate students in the fields of immunology, infectious disease, virology, microbiology, cell biology, and cancer biology and research.