A new study conducted by the US researchers proved that a common virus, believed to be transmitted during oral sex, is the cause of a rare throat cancer in both men and women. This study was first to find the link between the human papillomavirus or HPV the leading cause of cervical cancer and oropharyngeal cancer. Patients whose blood or saliva samples indicated that they had prior HPV infection were 32 times more likely to develop oropharnygeal cancer, which affects the throat, tonsils and back of the tongue. People who had had more than six oral sex partners were 8.6 times more likely to develop the HPV-linked cancer.

People should be reassured that oropharyngeal cancer is relatively uncommon and the overwhelming majority of people with an oral HPV infection probably will not get throat cancer.
Source