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Review
. 2019 Jun 21;8(6):622.
doi: 10.3390/cells8060622.

Human Papilloma Virus-Associated Cervical Cancer and Health Disparities

Affiliations
Review

Human Papilloma Virus-Associated Cervical Cancer and Health Disparities

Patti Olusola et al. Cells. .

Abstract

Cervical cancer develops through persistent infection with high-risk human papilloma virus (hrHPV) and is a leading cause of death among women worldwide and in the United States. Periodic surveillance through hrHPV and Pap smear-based testing has remarkably reduced cervical cancer incidence worldwide and in the USA. However, considerable discordance in the occurrence and outcome of cervical cancer in various populations exists. Lack of adequate health insurance appears to act as a major socioeconomic burden for obtaining cervical cancer preventive screening in a timely manner, which results in disparate cervical cancer incidence. On the other hand, cervical cancer is aggressive and often detected in advanced stages, including African American and Hispanic/Latina women. In this context, our knowledge of the underlying molecular mechanism and genetic basis behind the disparate cervical cancer outcome is limited. In this review, we shed light on our current understanding and knowledge of racially disparate outcomes in cervical cancer.

Keywords: cervical cancer; human papilloma virus; prevention; racial disparity; treatment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Cervical cancer development, prevention, and treatment. Invasive cervical cancer development from normal to progressive cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) through high-risk human papilloma virus (hrHPV) oncogenesis and host genome alterations. Available interventions in preventing and treating cervical cancer have also been shown. LEEP: loop electrosurgical excision procedure; RNR: ribonucleotide reductase; PARP: Poly (adenosine diphosphate [ADP]-ribose) polymerase.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Molecular pathogenesis of HPV-associated cervical cancer. Multiple nuclear and mitochondrial genetic alteration pathways leading to cervical cancer progression and racial health disparities. E6, E7: oncogenic HPV molecules. TSG: tumor suppressor gene; ONCG: oncogene.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Chromosomal and molecular aberrations driving human papilloma virus-associated cervical cancer initiation, development, and progression. Frequent chromosomal copy number loss or gain along with activation and inactivation of various genes through genetic mutation, methylation, or miRNA/LNC-RNA action in cervical cancer. Chr.: Chromosome; miRNA: micro-RNA; LNC-RNA: long non-coding RNA; mtDNA: mitochondrial DNA.

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