Belobrov S, et al. - This paper encompassed an identification of the presence and frequency of human papillomavirus (HPV) nucleic acid in p16 positive oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC). Furthermore, it ascertained if the virus were transcriptionally active. An assessment was also performed of the utility of p16 overexpression as a surrogate marker for HPV in OSCC. The data presented the presence of transcriptionally active HPV as a rare occurrence in OSCC. p16 was not found to be a suitable surrogate marker for HPV in OSCC cases. The assumption put forth was that non-viral mechanisms were responsible for the majority of IHC p16 overexpression in OSCC.