Contemporary Status and Frontiers of Cervical Cancer Screening in the United States.

Cervical cancer screening and its implementation have evolved tremendously since the first method, cytology using Papanicolaou stain, was introduced in the 1950s. New screening methods, such as human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, have been discovered and evidence-based changes have been made to official screening guidelines set forth by various U.S.

Exploring Barriers and Facilitators to the Buy-In of Multi-Cancer Early Detection Tests.

Purpose: Multi-cancer early detection (MCED) tests are a novel approach to cancer screening, offering potential to detect multiple cancers through a single blood draw. This study explored the barriers and facilitators to buy-in of MCED tests and to develop a communication tool to support informed decision making.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional qualitative study using grounded theory.

A randomized pilot study of HPV16 L2E7E6 fusion protein vaccination site post-treatment for HPV16+ cervical cancer.

Objective: Since anti-tumor immunity is enhanced by vaccination of mice adjacent to human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV16+) tumors, we examined whether HPV16 L2E7E6 fusion protein (TA-CIN) vaccination in the thigh of HPV16+ cervical cancer patients would be more immunogenic than their arm.

Methods: HPV16+ cervical cancer (stage IB1-IVA) patients, who had completed standard-of-care treatment within the past year and absent evidence of disease (NED), were enrolled in a pilot study (NCT02405221). Participants were randomized 1:1 to receive three 100 μg TA-CIN monthly intramuscular immunizations either in the arm or thigh and followed for two years for safety (CTCAEv4.

HER2 Alterations across Solid Tumors: Implications for Comprehensive Testing.

Purpose: ERBB2 (HER2) alterations (e.g., overexpression, amplification, and mutations) are known to drive tumor progression.

Evaluation of the combination lenvatinib and pembrolizumab in endometrial cancer; a real world multi-institutional review of practice patterns, efficacy and tolerability.

Objective: KEYNOTE-775 defined lenvatinib/pembrolizumab as the new standard-of-care for patients with proficient mismatch repair (pMMR) recurrent EC. However, the regimen required dose reductions in 66.5 % of participants and the generalizability of these results was uncertain.

NCCN Guidelines® Insights: Uterine Neoplasms, Version 3.2025.

The NCCN Guidelines for Uterine Neoplasms provide recommendations for diagnostic workup, clinical staging, and treatment options for patients with endometrial cancer and uterine sarcoma. The NCCN Cervical Uterine Panel meets at least annually to review comments from reviewers within their institutions; examine relevant new data from publications, abstracts, and recent FDA approvals; and reevaluate and update recommendations. These NCCN Guidelines Insights summarize the panel's deliberations on the new FIGO 2023 staging system and updates on the new systemic therapy recommendations for the management of endometrial cancer.

Age-specific incidence and five-year relative survival of endometrial cancer histotypes by race and ethnicity among US women, 2000 to 2019.

Introduction: Endometrial cancer is now recognized as a heterogeneous disease with distinct clinicopathologic and molecular features; however, population-based studies have traditionally focused on two broad histological groups (endometrioid and non-endometrioid). This study aims to delineate the epidemiology of individual endometrial cancer histotypes by analyzing age-specific incidence and five-year relative survival by race and ethnicity.

Methods: We estimated hysterectomy-corrected, age-specific incidence rates of endometrial cancer histotypes by race and ethnicity among women aged 30+ years, diagnosed from 2000 to 2019 in the Surveillance and Epidemiology and End Results database (SEER22; N = 390,805).

A Matched Case-Control Study Examining the Association Between Exposure to Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate and Cerebral Meningioma Using an Active Comparator.

The recent literature has reported an increased association between the use of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (dMPA) and cerebral meningioma (CM). Prior studies have been limited in generalizability and did not use an active comparator as a control. The current matched case-control study utilized a bootstrapped sampling design, matching 241 CM cases with controls (i.

The use of transrectal ultrasound to improve gynecologic interstitial applicator implantation.

Objective: Brachytherapy is essential for treating locally advanced cervical cancer and vaginal recurrences post-hysterectomy. While MRI and CT have permitted volumetric planning, precise interstitial applicator placement remains crucial for optimal dosimetry. We evaluated the impact of transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) on interstitial gynecologic brachytherapy needle utilization and dosimetry.

Multi-omic Characterization of Pre- and Post-neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Treated Ovarian Cancer Reveals Mediators of Tumorigenesis and Chemotherapy Response.

High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) accounts for more than 200,000 deaths each year. Despite recent advances in treating HGSC with neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the majority of patients ultimately develop chemotherapy resistance. HGSC is characterized by TP53 mutations and widespread copy number alterations and occurs frequently in the setting of deleterious germline BRCA1/2 variations, but many cases lack putative driver mutations.

Molecular characteristics by race and ethnicity of patients with high tumor mutational burden, high microsatellite instability, and mismatch repair deficiency: Real-world data from the multi-institutional Endometrial cancer Molecularly Targeted Therapy Consortium (ECMT2).

Objective: Mismatch repair deficiency (dMMR), high microsatellite instability (MSI-H), and high tumor mutation burden (TMB-H) are predictive and prognostic biomarkers in endometrial cancer. We aimed to characterize the racial/ethnic distribution of molecular markers and the clinical characteristics among endometrial cancer patients with TMB-H and MSI-H/dMMR.

Methods: The Endometrial Cancer Molecularly Targeted Therapy Consortium is a centrally verified clinical and molecular repository.

Exploring T-cell bispecific antibodies in gynecologic malignancy.

Gynecologic cancers present a significant challenge to women's health, necessitating innovative therapeutic strategies due to high relapse rates despite conventional treatments. Immunotherapy, particularly T-cell bispecific antibodies (TCBs), offers a promising approach by redirecting the immune system to target and eliminate tumor cells. TCBs bind simultaneously to tumor-associated antigens and T cells, inducing T-cell activation and tumor cell lysis.

State-Specific Incidence of Endometrial Cancer in the United States by Histologic Subtype Corrected for Hysterectomy Prevalence from 2010 to 2019.

Background: Accurate reporting of state-specific endometrial cancer incidence is important for informing cancer control efforts and may lead to new hypotheses about environmental and/or geographic risk factors. Previous studies have demonstrated the importance of accounting for hysterectomy prevalence when estimating state-level endometrial cancer incidence rates as hysterectomy prevalence varies by geographic region.

Methods: We used the Cancer in North America Public Use Dataset produced by the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries to identify incident endometrial cancer cases among women ≥20 years of age diagnosed from 2010 to 2019.

Whole-exome sequencing provides assessment of homologous recombination deficiency for identification of PARPi-responsive ovarian tumors.

Background/objectives: Homologous recombination repair deficiency (HRD) is frequently detected in gynecological cancers and is associated with sensitivity to poly-ADP ribose polymerase inhibition (PARPi). BRCA1/2 mutations have been approved as biomarkers for PARPi therapy, along with genomic patterns such as genomic loss of heterozygosity (gLOH) and large-scale transitions (LSTs). Clinical applications of various HRD assays are still under investigation.

Genomic alterations, molecularly targeted therapy, and survival: a real-world Endometrial Cancer Molecularly Targeted Therapy Consortium cohort study.

Objective: Next-generation sequencing and tumor testing to direct therapy in advanced/recurrent endometrial cancer are frequently used, but the impact of this approach is unclear. We sought to confirm the proportion of patients with at least 1 actionable alteration and whether the use of molecularly targeted therapy was associated with improved survival in metastatic endometrial cancer.

Methods: A multidisciplinary consortium was formed to study tumor testing and treatment with targeted therapies in advanced/recurrent endometrial cancer.

Trends in FDA approvals of gynecologic oncology therapeutics from 2019 to 2024.

Objective: To quantify the impact of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) therapeutic approvals in gynecologic oncology from 2019 to 2024 and compare these approvals to other solid tumor disease sites.

Methods: The FDA Approval Notifications was evaluated to assess drug approvals for solid tumors between August 15, 2019 and August 15, 2024. Drug approvals were evaluated to determine if they replaced the current standard of care (SOC), were used in combination with currently approved drugs, were used for adjuvant or maintenance therapy, or were approved for recurrence.

Ensuring relevance and equity in patient reported outcomes (PROs) in endometrial cancer: The SGO promote study (Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Opportunities Through Equity).

Objectives: The Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) PROMOTE Study examined the content relevance of the FACT-Endometrial (FACT-En) measure to develop an updated measure that reflects priority symptoms/concerns among diverse endometrial cancer survivors.

Methods: Endometrial cancer patients diagnosed within the past 3 years were recruited through multiple platforms. Concept elicitation was conducted to identify priority symptoms/concerns to generate a symptom index, FACT-Endometrial Symptom Index (FEnSI).

Targeting Mediator Kinase Cyclin-Dependent Kinases 8/19 Potentiates Chemotherapeutic Responses, Reverses Tumor Growth, and Prolongs Survival from Ovarian Clear Cell Carcinoma.

Background/objective: Ovarian clear cell carcinomas (OCCCs) are a rare histological subtype of epithelial ovarian cancer characterized by resistance to platinum-based therapy. CDK8/19, a component of the regulatory CDK module associated with Mediator complex, has been implicated in transcriptional reprogramming and drug resistance in various solid tumors. Our study aimed to investigate the therapeutic potential of CDK8/19 kinase inhibition using selective inhibitors SNX631 and SNX631-6 in OCCC treatment, both as monotherapy and in combination with standard chemotherapeutics.

Incorporation of triapine (T) to cisplatin chemoradiation (CRT) for locally advanced cervical and vaginal cancer: Results from NRG-GY006, a phase III randomized trial.

Background: Cisplatin-based chemoradiation (CRT) plus brachytherapy for locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) is standard. Intrinsic overexpression of ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) may enhance DNA damage repair from CRT. We report on outcomes of adding RNR inhibitor, triapine (T), to CRT.

Platinum-free interval and response to platinum retreatment or lenvatinib/pembrolizumab in patients with recurrent endometrial cancer: A real-world endometrial cancer molecularly targeted therapy consortium cohort study.

Objective: We sought to determine the association between platinum-free interval (PFI) and response to retreatment with platinum-based chemotherapy vs lenvatinib/pembrolizumab in patients with recurrent endometrial cancer.

Methods: Endometrial Cancer Molecularly Targeted Therapy (ECMT2) Consortium patients with recurrent disease were included in this retrospective analysis if they received first-line treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy (adjuvant or first recurrence), followed by second-line re-treatment with platinum or lenvatinib/pembrolizumab. PFI was defined as time between date of last platinum to start date of second-line therapy.

Dedicated research navigators: a tool to decrease disparities in clinical trial enrollment?

Objective: The goal of this study was to evaluate the impact of a formalized research team and screening process on racial disparities associated with clinical trial enrollment at a tertiary academic center.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients with gynecologic malignancies approached for clinical trial enrollment from March 2018 to February 2022. A dedicated research navigator team and protocol were implemented to review and approach all (potentially) eligible clinical trial patients.

Improved efficacy of therapeutic HPV DNA vaccine using intramuscular injection with electroporation compared to conventional needle and needle-free jet injector methods.

Background: We have previously developed a candidate therapeutic HPV DNA vaccine (pBI-11) encoding mycobacteria heat shock protein 70 linked to HPV16/18 E6/E7 proteins for the control of advanced HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer (NCT05799144). While naked DNA vaccines are readily produced, stable, and well tolerated, their potency is limited by the delivery efficiency. Here we compared three different IM delivery strategies, including intramuscular (IM) injection, either with a needle alone or with electroporation at the injection site, and a needle-free injection system (NFIS), for their ability to elicit gene expression and to improve the potency of pBI-11 DNA vaccine.

Association of neighborhood social vulnerability with ovarian cancer survival.

Objective: Social determinants of health (SDOH) impact cancer outcomes. The CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) integrates scores for four neighborhood-based SDOH domains (socioeconomic status, household characteristics, minority status, and housing type/transportation) to assess neighborhood social vulnerability (NSV). While NSV has been associated with overall cancer mortality and lung, breast, colon, and endometrial cancer-specific mortality, the relationship between NSV as defined by the SVI and ovarian cancer outcomes remains unknown.

Activin levels correlate with lymphocytic infiltration in epithelial ovarian cancer.

Objective: The TGF-β superfamily member activin, a dimer of the gene products of INHBA and/or INHBB, has been implicated in immune cell maturation and recruitment, but its immune impact within epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is not well characterized. We sought to explore differences in activin (INHBA/ Inhibin-βA and INHBB/ Inhibin-βB) between malignant and ovarian tissues at the RNA and protein level and assess the relationship between activin and immune cells in EOC.

Methods: Publicly available RNA sequencing data were accessed from GEO (#GSE143897) with normalization and quantification performed via DESeq2.

Five-Year Relative Survival Rates of Women Diagnosed with Uterine Cancer by County-Level Socioeconomic Status Overall and across Histology and Race/Ethnicity.

Understanding socioeconomic factors contributing to uterine cancer survival disparities is crucial, especially given the increasing incidence of uterine cancer, which disproportionately impacts racial/ethnic groups. We investigated the impact of county-level socioeconomic factors on five-year survival rates of uterine cancer overall and by histology across race/ethnicity. We included 333,013 women aged ≥ 30 years with microscopically confirmed uterine cancers (2000-2018) from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results 22 database followed through 2019.