OBJECTIVES: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a leading cause of anogenital, cervical, and head and neck cancers in both genders. This retrospective study assessed the hospitalization rates due to HPV-associated cancers in Brazil from 2011 to 2019.

METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted using the inpatient database from the Brazilian public healthcare system, covering approximately 75% of the population. Average hospitalization rates for oropharyngeal, laryngeal, oral, anal, vulvar, vaginal, cervical, and penile cancers per 100,000 people were calculated using age-specific population data from the Brazilian Census. HPV-attributable cases were estimated using fractions from the literature.

RESULTS: From 2011 to 2019, there were 487,017 hospitalizations due to HPV-associated cancers, with 269,901 in females and 217,716 in males. On average, there were 54,113 annual hospitalizations (26.6 per 100,000 population), including 29,989 for females (28.9 per 100,000 women) and 24,124 for males (24.2 per 100,000 men). Among females, cervical cancer was the leading cause, accounting for 72.3% of cases. For males, head and neck cancers were the most prevalent, comprising 87.4% of hospitalizations. The rate of anal cancer hospitalizations was higher in females (1.8 per 100,000) compared to males (1.1 per 100,000). Conversely, the hospitalization rate for oropharyngeal cancer was 5.7 per 100,000 in males, significantly higher than 1.3 per 100,000 in females. On average, there were 39,688 HPV-attributable hospitalizations annually: 26,891 among females and 12,797 among males. Cervical and head and neck cancers were the most common, with an estimated 21,670 annual hospitalizations due to cervical cancer and 13,273 due to head and neck cancers (10,518 among men and 2,755 among women).

CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the substantial burden of HPV-associated cancers in Brazil, emphasizing the need for effective prevention and control measures. Public health policies should focus on increasing awareness, encouraging vaccination, and improving access to screening and treatment services.