Genomic imprinting biomarkers for cervical cancer risk stratification

Abstract

Cervical cancer remains a significant global public health issue due to its high incidence and mortality. Current clinical guidelines recommend screening for high-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV)-DNA alongside a Thinprep cytologic test (TCT) before further medical evaluation [1]. The hrHPV-DNA test detects 14 high-risk HPV genotypes including the predominant hrHPV16/18, which can cause cervical abnormalities that may progress to cancer if untreated. TCT is paired with the hrHPV-DNA test to pathologically classify cervical specimens into categories based on increasing malignancy risks. Despite the high sensitivities, both tests have high false positive rates which lead to unnecessary colposcopy while HPV is cleared naturally in most women without progressing into lesions. To reduce overdiagnosis and overtreatment, several DNA methylation detections [2, 3] have been developed for triaging the malignancy risk of hrHPV-positive cervical lesions, but have yet to become clinically available. Here, we proposed an epigenetic biomarker panel