[Evolution of sexual behaviour in France and emergence of new head and neck cancers].

Despite the decreasing incidence of head and neck cancers, the incidence of oropharyngeal cancers related to HPV is increasing. New risk factors, other than tobacco or alcohol consumption, were described, such as sexual behaviours. The objective of this synthesis was to compare sexual behaviours described in three French studies conducted in 1970, 1992 and 2006 to other studies published in the international literature in order to assess if sexual behaviours could explain the emergence of these new oropharyngeal cancers. We globally found that the diversification of sexual behaviours (e.g., increase of the mean number of sexual partners and of oral sex practices) and the increase of specific head and neck HPV-positive cancers evolved in the same way. Even if the causality between head and neck cancers, HPV and sexual behaviours has not been clearly established, this hypothesis has to be discussed.