Reports demonstrating the presence of human papillomaviruses in benign and malignant tumours of the head and neck, lung tumours and tumours of the aerodigestive tract are increasing. Because of different methods used, all varying in sensitivity and specificity, a critical evaluation of results is required. Although the majority of papillomatous lesions of the oral cavity and the larynx contain papillomavirus DNA sequences, other benign and malignant lesions still remain negative. The identification of a new papillomavirus from an agressively growing inverted papilloma of the paranasal sinuses could lead to the isolation of as yet unidentified papillomaviruses which could play a role in the etiology of these benign and malignant lesions.