Circulating HPV DNA as a Biomarker for Pre-Invasive and Early Invasive Cervical Cancer: A Feasibility Study.
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Embargo End Date
ICR Authors
Authors
Bryan, SJ
Lee, J
Gunu, R
Jones, A
Olaitan, A
Rosenthal, AN
Cutts, RJ
Garcia-Murillas, I
Turner, N
Lalondrelle, S
Bhide, SA
Lee, J
Gunu, R
Jones, A
Olaitan, A
Rosenthal, AN
Cutts, RJ
Garcia-Murillas, I
Turner, N
Lalondrelle, S
Bhide, SA
Document Type
Journal Article
Date
2023-05-02
Date Accepted
2023-04-24
Abstract
BACKGROUND: High-risk HPV infection is responsible for >99% of cervix cancers (CC). In persistent infections that lead to cancer, the tumour breaches the basement membrane, releasing HPV-DNA into the bloodstream (cHPV-DNA). A next-generation sequencing assay (NGS) for detection of plasma HPV circulating DNA (cHPV-DNA) has demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity in patients with locally advanced cervix cancers. We hypothesised that cHPV-DNA is detectable in early invasive cervical cancers but not in pre-invasive lesions (CIN). METHODS: Blood samples were collected from patients with CIN (n = 52) and FIGO stage 1A-1B CC (n = 12) prior to treatment and at follow-up. DNA extraction from plasma, followed by NGS, was used for the detection of cHPV-DNA. RESULTS: None of the patients with pre-invasive lesions were positive for CHPV-DNA. In invasive tumours, plasma from one patient (10%) reached the threshold of positivity for cHPV-DNA in plasma. CONCLUSION: Low detection of cHPV-DNA in early CC may be explained by small tumour size, poorer access to lymphatics and circulation, and therefore little shedding of cHPV-DNA in plasma at detectable levels. The detection rate of cHPV-DNA in patients with early invasive cervix cancer using even the most sensitive of currently available technologies lacks adequate sensitivity for clinical utility.
Citation
Cancers, 2023, 15 (9), pp. 2590 -
Source Title
Cancers
Publisher
MDPI
ISSN
2072-6694
eISSN
2072-6694
Collections
Research Team
Molecular Oncology