Poinho Márcia, Dias Laura L M S, Pinheiro Layane S, Gomes Flávia Níniver O, Rondon Heidy H M F, de Oliveira Mikele P, Souza Jhonnatan S, Figueiredo Higino F, Lira Daniel L, Levi José E, Martins Valquíria C A, Torres Kátia L
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Imunologia Básica e Aplicada-PPGIBA, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, Manaus 69080-900, AM, Brazil.
Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas-FCF, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, Manaus 69080-900, AM, Brazil.
Viruses. 2025 Mar 13;17(3):409. doi: 10.3390/v17030409.
Cervical cancer is highly prevalent among women in Amazonas, Brazil, mainly due to low screening coverage, and is diagnosed at a late stage, which compromises the treatment efficacy and survival rates. After treatment, recurrence is frequent, and there are few follow-up options to detect it. This highlights the urgent need for less-invasive biomarkers to monitor affected patients.
This study employed real-time PCR, targeting the E7 gene of HPV types 16 and 18 to analyze cell-free DNA from plasma samples from 39 cervical cancer patients treated at the Oncology Control Center Foundation in Amazonas, Brazil.
cf-HPV 16 DNA was detected in 54% of the samples before treatment. The socioeconomic and behavioral data showed that 46.2% of the patients had low educational levels, 77% reported having a low income, 79.5% experienced an early sexual activity onset, and 15.4% had never undergone cytological screening. Persistence or recurrence occurred in 30.8% of cases over 4-33 months of follow-up, with cf-HPV DNA detectable in 75% of these cases.
cf-HPV DNA in plasma is a promising biomarker for post-treatment surveillance, facilitating the earlier detection of persistence/recurrence. Incorporating this biomarker into clinical protocols could enhance outcomes and survival, particularly in underserved regions like the Amazon, where the access to healthcare is limited.
宫颈癌在巴西亚马孙州的女性中非常普遍，主要原因是筛查覆盖率低，且多在晚期才被诊断出来，这影响了治疗效果和生存率。治疗后，复发很常见，而用于检测复发的后续检查手段很少。这凸显了迫切需要侵入性较小的生物标志物来监测受影响的患者。
本研究采用实时聚合酶链反应，以16型和18型人乳头瘤病毒（HPV）的E7基因为靶点，分析了来自巴西亚马孙州肿瘤控制中心基金会接受治疗的39例宫颈癌患者血浆样本中的游离DNA。
治疗前，54%的样本中检测到游离HPV 16 DNA。社会经济和行为数据显示，46.2%的患者教育水平低，77%的患者报告收入低，79.5%的患者性活动开始早，15.4%的患者从未接受过细胞学筛查。在4至33个月的随访中，30.8%的病例出现持续感染或复发，其中75%的病例可检测到游离HPV DNA。
血浆中的游离HPV DNA是治疗后监测的一种有前景的生物标志物，有助于早期检测持续感染/复发。将这种生物标志物纳入临床方案可改善治疗结果和提高生存率，特别是在像亚马孙这样医疗服务不足、医疗资源有限的地区。
