New Test for Cervical Cancer Proven 100% Accurate

Researchers led by Queen Mary University of London have developed a new test for cervical cancer and based on a recent clinical trial has been found to have a 100% success rate. The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, “compared a new ‘epigenetics-based’ cervical cancer test with Pap smear and HPV tests, and investigated how well it predicted the development of cervical cancer up to five years in advance in a large study of women aged 25-65 in Canada,” according to a statement issued by the University.

“This is an enormous development,” lead researcher Professor Attila Lorincz said. “We’re not only astounded by how well this test detects cervical cancer, but it is the first time that anyone has proven the key role of epigenetics in the development of a major solid cancer using data from patients in the clinic. Epigenetic changes are what this cervical cancer test picks up and is exactly why it works so well.”

Epigenetics, according to IFLScience.com, “refers to how genes are expressed, i.e. whether specific genes are turned ‘on’ or ‘off’, rather than changes to the genetic code itself.”

The clinical trial was conducted on a randomized sample of 15,744 Canadian women between the ages of 25 and 65. The new test they developed spotted all eight invasive cervical cancers, while the standard Pap smear only detected a quarter and the HPV test detected half.

Researchers also took 257 HPV-positive women from the larger test group and found that their new test method could also detect 93% of precancerous lesions, compared to a combination of a Pap smear and HPV test which only had an 86% success rate.