Men who have struggled with head or neck cancer related to HPV For an article for a national publication, I'm looking to talk to men diagnosed with HPV-associated cancers of the mouth, head, or throat. My article addresses the epidemic of such cancers in men and what men should know about this disease--risk factors, diagnosis, and treatment.

In my dermatology practice, I see HPV every week, usually as warts. The conversation sometimes turns serious when a patient mentions a spouse or brother with an HPV driven throat cancer. A 2025 JAMA Network Open analysis of US registry data counted 103,107 new oropharyngeal cancer cases from 2006 to 2021, and about 80% were men. Incidence rose from 3.8 to 4.4 per 100,000 person years. What I tell men is direct. HPV causes roughly 70% of oropharyngeal cancers. Watch for a painless neck lump, one sided throat pain, or swallowing trouble that lasts more than two to three weeks. Risk rises with more oral sex partners, plus smoking or heavy alcohol. Diagnosis is a biopsy with HPV or p16 testing. Treatment is surgery or radiation, sometimes chemotherapy.