You can collect your own cervical samples at home and always pay attention to your cervical health
Introduction
As a malignant tumor that seriously threatens women's health, my country has included cervical cancer and breast cancer (two cancers) examinations in major public health service projects since 2009. The latest news is that the National Health Commission, together with the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, and other departments, has jointly formulated and issued the "Action Plan for Accelerating the Elimination of Cervical Cancer (2023-2030)" and has joined forces with multiple departments to participate in the comprehensive prevention and control of cervical cancer, protect the health of women, and accelerate the elimination of cervical cancer in my country.
However, when it comes to cervical cancer screening, gynecologists often mention: "Even after taking the HPV vaccine, women still need to undergo regular cervical cancer screening!" But is cervical cancer screening suitable for women of all ages? How often is "regular" checked? What items need to be checked? How do I read the results of the test? Many people are confused.
Will HPV infection definitely lead to cervical cancer?
It is inconvenient to go to the hospital. How can you monitor cervical health in real time?
Is the TCT examination easy to miss in cervical screening?
01
HPV infection, fear of cervical cancer, nightmare begins...
HPV infection ≠ cervical cancer. Clinically, HPV is divided into two categories: low-risk and high-risk (hrHPV) according to the different risks of HPV pathogenicity/carcinogenicity. Low-risk HPV has almost nothing to do with cervical cancer. There are 14 types of hrHPV: 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, 68. Among them, 16 and 18 hrHPV are highly correlated with the occurrence of cervical cancer. Among the remaining 12 types of hrHPV, only less than 0.1% of women infected with hrHPV will get cervical cancer.
There is no need to be overly nervous and afraid of HPV infection. About 80% of women will have a transient HPV infection in their lifetime. Generally, after infection, the body's own immune system will clear the virus within 1-2 years. Moreover, cervical cancer has a relatively long precancerous lesion period. It takes at least 10–15 years for cervical lesions to develop into cervical cancer. During this period, if we can detect the disease in time, monitor it in real time, and provide correct treatment, we can completely block cervical cancer.
02
PAX1/JAM3 double gene hypermethylation can be used as a marker for self-collection screening of cervical lesions/cancer
In 2014, studies showed that vaginal self-collection samples for hrHPV-DNA testing can achieve similar sensitivity as doctoral sampling. At present, high-sensitivity hrHPV-DNA testing is still the preferred screening option for cervical cancer in many countries, but its low specificity may make it impossible to distinguish between persistent and temporary infections. However, low specificity can easily cause psychological burdens and overdiagnosis and treatment for those being screened. Therefore, finding different cervical cancer detection methods remains the focus of global clinicians and public health experts.
Recently, a team led by Professor Dong Weiliang from the First Affiliated Hospital of University of South China selected a total of 272 patients for the study, including 102 cases (37.4%) of benign cervical or chronic cervicitis (normal), 72 cases (26.5%) of CIN1, 43 cases (15.8%) of CIN2, 29 cases (10.7%) of CIN3 and 26 cases (9.6%) of cervical cancer. The results were published in the most authoritative and influential senior academic core journal in the field of laboratory medicine in my country, "Chinese Journal of Laboratory Medicine". The title of the article is: "Feasibility evaluation of detecting PAX1/JAM3 dual gene methylation markers in female vaginal self-collected samples as cervical cancer screening".
In the case of self-sampling, the decrease in brushing efficiency of effective cells will produce differences in sample quality. Therefore, this study focuses on the consistency evaluation of the test results of self-sampled samples and doctor-sampled samples. The feasibility of clinical application of PAX1/JAM3 double gene methylation in predicting cervical lesions/cancer was deeply analyzed. The test results of portable vaginal self-sampled samples and doctor-sampled samples were consistent.
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03
PAX1/JAM3 double gene hypermethylation can be used as a reliable marker for cervical screening in women of childbearing age/postmenopausal age
The methylation test of PAX1 gene and JAM3 gene in premenopausal women has a specificity as high as 92%, which will effectively reduce the anxiety caused by HPV infection in women of childbearing age and may reduce the risk of pregnancy and childbirth caused by over-treatment.
Some areas of HPV infection and lesions are hidden inside the cervical canal, and are mostly found in TZ3. This results in 20% of women with insufficient colposcopy evaluation and the risk of missed diagnosis; in this study, TZ3 women (143 cases) were postmenopausal women. (75 cases), suggesting that TZ3 is not limited to elderly women with poor estrogen, and women of childbearing age need to pay more attention. Blindly performing diagnostic conization "just in case" will also have certain negative consequences. The depth of surgical resection and cervical stenosis are highly correlated with the risk of premature birth.
In addition, it is very interesting that the JAM3 gene shows significant sensitivity and specificity in the detection of cervical adenocarcinoma, which is of great value for the detection of cervical adenocarcinoma. In summary, the screening strategy of PAX1 gene and JAM3 gene methylation testing can help reduce the risk of missed detection of occult lesions. By performing methylation testing first, women who need careful colposcopy can be more effectively identified. This improves the accuracy and timeliness of inspections.
04
Monitor cervical health in real time at home, caring for women’s health starts with you and me
Because the understanding of HPV infection and cervical cancer is limited, women with HPV infection are suffering and living in fear, which not only puts a burden on their bodies and minds; they may also not understand due to lack of understanding, and may Lead to family conflicts, etc. At this stage, women infected with HPV often fall into anxiety, which may often lead to over-treatment. ending.
Of course, women who test negative for HPV cannot be careless; because TCT cytopathological testing has a certain missed diagnosis rate, and at the same time, there are still some occult cervical lesions, so we need to pay attention to them.
This article aims to help more women understand HPV infection, the development process of cervical lesions/cancer, and how women of childbearing age/postmenopause can protect their cervical health. HPV infection is not terrible. Women who are not infected with HPV should not be careless. They should detect and treat it in time, maintain a good attitude and develop good living habits, monitor cervical health in real time, and welcome every day of life happily. We call on more people to understand and care about women’s health, so that every woman can have a healthy body and a happy life!
About CISPOLY
Beijing Origin Poly Biotechnology Co., Ltd. is a technology company driven by innovative technology and focusing on health. CISPOLY is a pioneer in the field of early diagnosis of gynecological tumors. With exclusive technology and patented markers as the core, it has developed early diagnosis products for gynecological tumors such as cervical cancer, endometrial cancer, and ovarian cancer, filling the gap in this field.
As women pay more and more attention to their own health, the women's health market will have great potential. In addition to the gynecological tumor early screening and early diagnosis product line, CISPOLY will also establish more women's health-related product pipelines in the future to create a leading technology innovation company in the women's health market.