Blood test may detect cervical cancer recurrence earlier
After treatment for cervical cancer, the key question is whether the disease will return. A blood test based on freely circulating DNA could identify recurrence risk earlier than current follow-up methods. Researchers found that specific DNA fragments in patients’ blood are nearly unique to the individual tumour.
Published in eLife, the study analysed blood samples from cervical cancer patients. Almost all cervical cancers are caused by human papillomavirus (HPV). In most cases, HPV DNA integrates into the human genome. The resulting connection, known as an HPV-human DNA junction (the point where viral DNA attaches to human DNA), is unique to each tumour. Researchers investigated whether these junctions are also detectable in blood.
A unique tumour fingerprint in blood
They were. The study shows that these junctions are detectable in serum cell-free DNA in a fraction of patients at the time of initial treatment and again six months later. Retrospective analysis revealed the junctions were more frequently detectable in women whose cancer subsequently recurred. These are retrospective findings and need to be confirmed in prospective studies.
The study also identified a notable pattern related to HPV types. Cancers caused by HPV types outside the so-called α9 clade (which includes the most common type, HPV16) recurred more frequently. This held both in the study’s own patient group and in data from a large public cancer database.
What this could mean for post-treatment monitoring
Current follow-up after cervical cancer treatment relies partly on imaging and physical examination. A blood test detecting specific tumour markers could complement existing approaches. Because each patient’s HPV-human DNA junction is unique, the test effectively acts as a personal tumour fingerprint. The researchers suggest it could also help confirm the absence of recurrence, potentially offering significant reassurance to patients. Further clinical validation is required.
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