Cervical cancer is almost entirely preventable, yet it continues to affect hundreds of thousands of women around the world each year. Caused by infection with high-risk strains of human papillomavirus (HPV), cervical cancer remains a major global health challenge with deaths projected to rise substantially without urgent action.
In Canada, advances in screening and treatment have helped reduce cervical cancer rates, but crucial gaps remain.
Supported by $2 million from the Terry Fox Research Institute as part of a major cancer prevention initiative led by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, a multidisciplinary team will dedicate the next five years to closing these gaps, aiming to stop cervical cancer before it ever begins.
Led by Drs. Gina Ogilvie, professor, Inna Sekirov, clinical associate professor, and Citlali Marquez, clinical assistant professor, all at the University of British Columbia, the team will work to uncover the multiple ways that the body interacts with HPV and pinpoint those most at risk of cervical cancer, paving the way for personalized and preventative follow-up care.
Currently, when HPV causes significant changes in cervical cells, the abnormal cells are removed using a standard approach called the loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP), which prevents cancer from developing.
For most patients, LEEP is effective and precancer does not return. However, pre-cancerous changes recur in roughly 10 per cent of patients, requiring ongoing monitoring or additional procedures to remove abnormal cells. And while ongoing or recurring HPV infection is known to increase the risk of abnormal cells and potential progression to cervical cancer, many other biological factors that influence risk for progression or recurrence are still unknown.
In particular, researchers don’t know how bacteria and other microorganisms in the genital tract, the chemicals they produce, the body’s immune responses and changes in the genetic makeup of the virus itself might influence the risk of recurrence, nor how these factors may interact with each other to influence recurrence.
To address this, the team will monitor patients undergoing LEEP and collect samples during routine follow-up visits. Using these samples, they will study the various biological factors involved to get a comprehensive view of how they, together, influence HPV and the recurrence of cervical pre-cancer.
“The knowledge gained from this research will help improve how we identify and monitor patients at higher risk, leading to more precise and effective follow-up care,” says Dr. Ogilvie.
“This work could also lead to better ways to prevent other HPV-related cancers, reduce the risk of developing them and improve how they are treated and managed.”