HPV, or Human Papillomavirus, has been in the news quite a bit because of its link to cancer and the recently introduced vaccine for girls to prevent infections.

Along with its link to cervical cancer, HPV can also play a role in head and neck cancer. A new study from the University of Michigan finds HPV related cancers of the tongue and tonsils actually respond well to chemotherapy and radiation treatments.

Researchers treated 66 patients with advanced cancer of the tonsils and the base of the tongue, of those, 64% of the tumors were positive for high risk strains of HPV. Almost all of the HPV positive tumors responded to initial chemotherapy, and 78% of those patients survived with their organs preserved.

On the other hand cancers of the tonsils and the base of the tongue that have high levels of a specific growth factor receptor, are least responsive to current treatments.

Researchers say this is a step in the right direction toward individualized cancer treatments.