In a paper published this May in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Robert Burk, M.D., and colleagues at the National Cancer Institute sequenced the genomes of human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 that had infected 3,200 women. (HPV16 is responsible for more than half of all cases of cervical cancer.) The study looked at whether variants of HPV16 posed different risks for causing cervical cancer. The researchers found significant risk differences among HPV 16 variants: HPV 16 called sub-lineage D2, for example, posed over 100 times greater risk of cervical adenocancer (which is not well detected by PaP smear) compared with reference HPV 16 A lineages. Identification of specific HPV16 variants defines a group of women at unique risk for cervical cancer and could have clinical significance for immediate treatment. Dr. Burk is professor of pediatrics, of microbiology & immunology, of obstetrics & gynecology and women’s health and of epidemiology & population health. He also is vice chair of translational research in pediatrics.
Posted on: Thursday, June 09, 2016