A total of one hundred prospectively collected fresh tongue tissue biopsy specimens comprising precancer (n = 20), cancer (n = 50) and adjacent normal controls (n = 30) and two tongue cancer cell lines (UPCI:SCC090 and AW13516) were employed for the detection of HPV infection, HPV genotypes and analysis of expression and activation of AP-1 family proteins. The gene discussed is FOS; the disease is cancer.