Breakthrough discovery a ‘major step forward’ in understanding cervical cancer

(Emily Henderson/ News Medical Net) — Scientists have discovered that cervical cancer can be divided into two distinct molecular subgroups – one far more aggressive than the other – as part of the largest ‘omics’ study of its kind, led by researchers at UCL and the University of Southampton.

Published in Nature Communications, researchers say the breakthrough findings are a ‘major step forward’ in understanding disease and provide a tantalizing new clue in determining the best treatments for individual patients.

Cervical cancer is a major cause of cancer-related deaths in women and accounts for 528,000 new cases and 266,000 deaths worldwide each year. It is almost always caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), a common virus that can be passed from one person to another during sex. (…)