Medical sensation

DNA test for the detection of cervical cancer

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(Bild: ©H_Ko - stock.adobe.com)

Together with the University of Innsbruck and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, the EUTOPS Institute at tirol kliniken has developed a new test for the early detection of cervical cancer. This DNA-based test is intended to surpass all previously established methods.

Cervical cancer is one of the most common causes of death among women of childbearing age worldwide. In order to counteract this risk, the University of Innsbruck, the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and the EUTOPS Institute at tirol kliniken have worked together to develop a new early detection method. A report on this was published in the journal "Nature Medicine".

Early detection and greater accuracy
The new method can detect almost all cancers of the entire uterus at an early stage using DNA testing. This test is said to surpass all previous established methods for early detection in terms of accuracy.

The WID-qCIN test analyzes selected DNA regions in a cervical smear using a high-throughput, automatable and objective sample evaluation system.

Martin Widschwendter, Leiter des European Translational Oncology Prevention and Screening Institute (EUTOPS)

Cervical cancer usually develops in the uppermost layers of the cervical mucosa and usually progresses in stages. It is also closely associated with HPV infection. Around 660,000 women are diagnosed with invasive cancer every year. Around 350,000 die from this disease.

Test with fewer errors
The new procedure (WID-gCIN test) detects the same number of women who have a severe precancerous stage or already have cancer compared to the conventional Pap smear and is based on objective DNA analysis. This makes the test less prone to error. "The WID-qCIN test analyzes selected DNA regions in a cervical smear and follows a high-throughput, automatable and objective sample evaluation system," explains Martin Widschwendter, Head of the European Translational Oncology Prevention and Screening Institute (EUTOPS).

Together with the HPV vaccination, our test procedure is likely to spare well over 90% of patients and their families the suffering associated with this disease in the future

Martin Widschwendter, Leiter des European Translational Oncology Prevention and Screening Institute (EUTOPS)

Current results
Data from around 28,000 women from the greater Stockholm area was collected and analyzed between January and March 2017. 69 percent of all cases were detected in advance by the tests. "Together with the HPV vaccination, our test procedure is likely to spare well over 90% of patients and their families the suffering associated with this disease in the future," Widschwendter concludes.

Tests already available
The research team was able to present another test for the early detection of uterine cancer as early as fall 2023. Since March of this year, the tests have been available for patients presenting to gynecologists due to abnormal bleeding - and will also be available in Switzerland in the future. Using these two test procedures, the team hopes to detect the majority of all malignant tumors originating in the uterus early enough in the future. The aim is to avoid aggressive therapies as far as possible and enable patients to survive these diseases without any significant reduction in their quality of life.

The study was financially supported by the province of Tyrol and the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program.