Circulating HPV DNA in patients with cervical precancerous lesions and cervical cancer

Objective: In our review article we focused on the circulating HPV DNA and its potential role in the pathogenesis of cervical cancer and in the evaluation of patients prognosis with cervical cancer Design: The article is a systematic review study analyzing available scientific articles focused on the circulating HPV DNA. Setting: Clinic of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Jesenius faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovakia. Methods: In our study we searched the medical database PubMed with the key words: circulating HPV DNA, cervical cancer, cervical precanceroses. The core of our work is focused on the scientific articles published in English language since year 1995. Results: We identified 13 studies in PubMed database analyzing the circulating HPV DNA in the process of cervical carcinogenesis. It is clear from the results that circulating HPV DNA is a significant prognostic marker of cervical malignant diseases including the early stages. Conclusion: The results focused on circulating HPV DNA show the significance of molecular biology in assessing the prognosis of cervical cancer. This idea has to be supported by further relevant studies. The uniformity of studies and use of the most sophisticated methods could help to answer the question about the real role of circulating HPV DNA in the process of cervical carcinogenesis and disease progression.