Laia Alemany Vilches (Spain)

Catalan Institute of Oncology - IDIBELL Cancer Epidemiology Research Programme
I am a doctor specialized in preventive medicine and public health. I did a Master of Public Health at Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona in 2004. I did my residency in preventive medicine and public health at Vall Hebron Hospital (2000-2005). After the residency I did a stay at the Pan American Health Organization, with a scholarship from the Spanish Association of Vaccination (2006). At the Catalan Institute of Oncology I have been working since 2007, I am responsible for the Unit of Molecular Epidemiology and Genetics in Infections and Cancer (UNIC-Molecular) since 2016, and since 2018 I am head of the Research Program in Cancer Epidemiology. At UNIC-Molecular we have as main lines the study of risk factors and natural history, detection of biomarkers of early detection, diagnosis and monitoring, and prevention of cancer pathology associated with infections. My field of research is mainly the Human Papilloma Virus. I have been leading national and international projects since 2007 aimed at describing the epidemiology of HPV and related cancers, and more recently I have focused my research on HPV and head and neck cancer, both at the epidemiological, prevention and clinical levels. In 2016 I obtained my PhD in medicine, from which I have received the national award of the Royal Academy of Doctors (Health) and the medical award of the University of Barcelona. In 2013 I did a pre-doctoral stay at the German Cancer Research Centre, DKFZ (with a scholarship from the Spanish Association Against Cancer) and in 2017 I did a Masters in Molecular Oncology at the CNIO.

Presenter of 2 Presentations

Burden of HPV- associated diseases (ID 45)

Session Date
07/20/2020
Session Time
11:00 - 12:25
Room
Hall A
Session Type
Interdisciplinary
Lecture Time
11:03 - 11:23
Public Health / Epidemiology / Epidemiology: Natural History/Risk Factors ePoster

AGE PATTERNS IN HPV-POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE ANOGENITAL AND HEAD AND NECK CANCERS (ID 1349)

Session Date
07/21/2020
Session Time
10:00 - 17:00
Room
ePoster
Session Type
Poster Viewing - 20-24 July
Session Name
Public Health / Epidemiology / Epidemiology: Natural History/Risk Factors
Lecture Time
10:02 - 10:03

Abstract

Introduction

Understanding the age patterns of HPV-related and unrelated cancers is important for elucidating natural history of these cancers and guiding cancer prevention interventions.The aim of this re-analyses was to describe the age at diagnosis by the available information of anogenital and head and neck cancers from the RIS HPV TT/VVAP/Head and Neck ICO international surveys.

Methods

Approximately 18,000 formalin-fixed paraffin embedded blocks preserving anogenital and head and neck cancers were included in the analyses. From those patients country, age, gender, histology, anatomicalsite, and HPV results were available. HPV results included: HPV DNA, mRNA and p16INK4a assessment. Age at diagnosis presented missing data. This missingness was approached through a sensitivity analysis technique by implementing a two-step iterative algorithm, in order to model different scenarios of non response under a non ignorable missing pattern assumption. In the case of head and neck and anal cancers the partial observed information was in the outcome of interest (age at diagnosis) and in a binary covariate (gender). For the rest of the cancers present in the anatomical locations cervix, vulva, vagina and penis,the missingness was only present in the age at diagnosis.

Results

Cervical cancer patients were in average 10 years younger at diagnosis than the rest of locations (Table 1). In cancers of the cervix, vulva, and anus, HPV-positive cases where younger than HPV-negative (p<0.05). In cervical cancers, cases with HPVs 16, 18 and 45 where diagnosed at younger ages compared with cases with other types, particularly HPVs 18 and 45 (Table 2). This was not observed in the other anatomical sites.

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Conclusions

We have observed different patterns of age at diagnosis by anatomical sites, HPV positivity and HPV types. These differences will help us to understand the natural history of the infection to cancer and may have implications in prevention strategies.

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Moderator of 1 Session

Public Health Oral Session
Session Type
Public Health Oral Session
Session Date
07/24/2020
Session Time
14:15 - 15:15
Room
Hall D

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