Recently, an association between the herpesvirus and carcinoma of the larynx has been suggested. In the present study, serum antibody levels for the herpesvirus types 1 and 2 and the Epstein-Barr virus were analyzed in 39 laryngeal carcinoma patients and matched with a carefully selected control group of patients.
The study failed to show a correlation between antibody titer changes and the herpesvirus type 2 or Epstein-Barr virus and carcinoma of the intrinsic larynx. The failure to show differences in neutralizing antibody titers between carcinoma patients and control groups does not exclude the possibility that herpesvirus type 1 is etiologically related to laryngeal cancer. Additional studies will be needed to clarify this point.