Radiation-Induced Dedifferentiation of Head and Neck Cancer Cells Into Cancer Stem Cells Depends on Human Papillomavirus Status

Supporting the favorable prognosis of HPV-positive HNSCCs, we show that (1) HPV-positive HNSCCs have a lower frequency of CSCs; (2) RT can dedifferentiate HNSCC cells into CSCs; and (3) radiation-induced dedifferentiation depends on the HPV status of the tumor.