A UK-based study found a new cervical cancer screening test with a 100% detection rate. These results are well above those of the current tests. The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, compared a new epigenetic-based cervical cancer test with the present human papillomavirus (HPV) tests. The new method has made it possible to determine the course of cervical cancer up to five years in advance, surpassing the current screening methods.
Unlike current tests, which look in the genetic code of DNA for marks that indicate the HPV virus, the new test examines the natural chemical markers appearing above the DNA and thus constituting its “epigenetic profile.” Thanks to this new screening method, 100% of the cervical cancers in those women who participated in the research were detected.
“This is a huge development,” says Attila Lorincz, the study’s principal investigator, who also contributed to the development of the first global HPV test in 1988.
New Cervical Cancer Screening Method Is 100 Percent Accurate
“We are not only surprised by the quality of this cervical cancer detection test, but this is the first time anyone has proven the key role of epigenetics in the development of cancer using patient data. Epigenetic changes correct this cervical cancer test and that’s exactly why it works so well,” the researcher added.
The scientists conducted a randomized clinical trial on 15,744 women between the ages of 25 and 65. Thanks to the new epigenetic test, the researchers were able to detect 100% of the eight cervical cancers in these women. In comparison, the current screening methods identified only 25% of cancers and the HPV test 50%. The study also looked more closely at 257 women who tested positive for HPV. The new screening test detected 93% of precancerous lesions in these women.
“This is really a huge step forward in how to treat women infected with HPV,” says Attila Lorincz. “We were surprised by the ability of this new test to detect and predict cervical cancers at an early stage, with 100% of cancers detected, including adenocarcinomas, a type of cervical cancer very difficult to detect.”
