Serum-based studies show novel biomarkers for circulating HPV-DNA in high-risk HPV women as a biomarker for early detection of cervical cancer.

Background: Cervical cancer caused by HPV is the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide. Detecting circulating cell-free HPV-DNA can provide valuable information about treatment response as well as serve as a diagnostic and prognostic tool for residual disease and relapse. However, only a few biomarkers are available for early diagnosis, and the current ones require tissue excision or invasive procedures, limiting their use in routine diagnosis. Analysis of nucleic acids has become popular for cancer diagnosis, and circulating HPV-DNA is a newly reported biomarker for identifying individuals with cancer. In a recent study, HPV-DNA was successfully detected in 85% of treatment-naive patients, and changes in HPV-DNA levels corresponding to treatment response and relapse were observed. HPV-DNA shows promise as a biomarker for therapy monitoring in both primary and recurrent cervical cancer, and it could become a sensitive, non-invasive, and easily accessible tool for diagnosis and follow-up.