In a promising advancement for cancer care, doctors at AIIMS Delhi have developed a new blood test that could assist in keeping track of whether a cervical treatment is working or if the disease has come back. The test discloses fragments of human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA in the blood, which will relate to the size of the tumour and the body’s response to the therapy, as per a report by Indian Express.
Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women in India. As per data from WHO, over 1.27 lakh cases were reported and around 80,000 deaths in 2022. More than 95% of these cases are related to long-term infection with high-risk HPV strains. The monitoring of the disease is considered to be expensive and physically demanding as it requires repeated scans and biopsies.
Test is cost effective for patients
Dr Mayank Singh, Associate Professor of Medical Oncology at AIIMS, stated to Indian Express that, ‘’the test could lessen the financial burden on patients. Only those with elevated HPV markers would need further scans. Sometimes, blood vessels rise even before tumours show up on imaging-helping us catch relapses earlier.’’
The research, which has been published in Scientific Reports, studied 60 cervical cancer patients and 10 healthy women. Before the treatment, patients had an average of 9.35 ng/µ of circulating HPV DNA. After three months of therapy, the level fell to about 7 ng/µL, indicating that the treatment was working. Usually, healthy women had an average of 6.95 gn/µL. Doctors used a highly sensitive molecular test to determine the most dangerous HPV types-HPV16 and HPV18.
The test, if it is proven in larger studies, could also be used as a toll for an early diagnostic tool. This will prove to be very beneficial for India, where most of the patients are detected at later stages. The reason behind this is because of the limited access to regular screening in many areas. A simple blood test can improve early detection and after-treatment chances.
At present, the most common screening methods are pap smears and visual inspection with acetic acid. Meanwhile, the government is also planning to launch HPV vaccines for girls who are in the 9 to 14 age group. The motive of the scheme is to prevent the disease altogether in future generations.