Gynecologic Oncology

Adding a monoclonal antibody (MAb)-bevacizumab-to combination chemotherapy may increase survival in patients with recurrent cervical cancer, according to results of a National Cancer Institute-funded randomized trial. Use of bevacizumab in cervical cancer is experimental; the MAb currently is approved to treat metastatic colorectal cancer, non-squamous, non-small cell lung cancer, and glioblastoma.

Two doses of quadrivalent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine protects against genital warts nearly as well as the standard 3-dose schedule, according to new study findings.

A daily regimen of low-dose (

Women who take aspirin daily may reduce their risk of ovarian cancer by 20%, new research has found. However, this preventive strategy isn't ready for prime time; additional study is needed before clinical recommendations can be made.

New research, led by Connie Trimble, MD, shows that vaccine treatments for women with high-grade cervical dysplasia can trigger an immune response that may induce some lesions to resolve.

The rationale for annual mammography in women aged 40 to 59 years needs to be reassessed in countries where adjuvant therapy for breast cancer is available.

Can you identify the cause of abnormal vaginal bleeding in this middle-aged woman?

New evidence reveals that there may be a benefit to continuing cervical cancer screening beyond age 65 years.

Women whose cervical cancer screening ceased between ages 50 and 64 years were 6 times more likely than women who were screened to have cervical cancer from ages 65 to 83 years.

Conservative surgery for early-stage vulvar cancer had little to no long-term effect on a woman’s sexuality or body image, a small study found.

Diagnosis and treatment of high-grade cervical dysplasia substantially increases the risk of cervical or vaginal cancer at or after age 60 years, a study finds.

A simple blood test using plasma thermogram could serve as an effective new indicator for detecting cervical cancer, including assessment of the cancer’s stage.

A small, preliminary study suggests that measurement of heat changes in blood proteins may have potential in detection and staging of cervical cancer. Published in PLoS One, the report describes what may be a unique plasma thermal profile for different disease stages that could help distinguish them from healthy tissue.

Researchers discovered 13 gene mutations of significance in cervical cancer, including 8 mutations not previously linked to cervical cancer and 2 mutations novel to any type of cancer.

New research shows HAND2 gene methylation may have potential as a biomarker for early endometrial cancer detection and as a predictor of treatment response.

The use of oral contraceptives in women with BRCA1/2 mutations was associated with a reduced risk of ovarian cancer.

Female providers were twice as likely as their male counterparts to order HPV testing for low-risk women aged 30 to 65 who had normal Pap smear results.

Fertility treatment isn’t linked to an increased risk of ovarian cancer, according to a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-supported study spanning nearly two decades and published in Fertility and Sterility.

An innovative, individualized vaccine that may prolong the remission period of ovarian cancer survivors has been developed. Will it work?

A new index using protein markers can identify ovarian cancer cases at high and low risk for recurrence and discriminate between short- and long-term survivors.

A screening protocol that takes into consideration CA-125 levels over time and results of transvaginal ultrasound (TVS) shows promise in early detection of ovarian cancer, according to a new report from investigators at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. In a large, prospective study, the combination demonstrated excellent specificity and positive predictive value (PPV) in a group of women at average risk of ovarian cancer.

Researchers suggest that recommendations for the universal screening of breast cancer with mammography be reassessed.

Retinoids may have some effect on regression of certain grades of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) but do not prevent disease progression.

Research shows that vaccinating all teens-both boys and girls--results in an enormous reduction in HPV-related infections. Why aren't we doing it in the United States?

Despite new screening guidelines, most obstetrician-gynecologists continue to perform annual pap tests, according to a recent survey of members of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).

These beautiful and often other-worldly photographs by pathologist Ed Uthman, MD, show both benign and malignant ovarian pathology.

MRI-guided 3-dimensional brachytherapy (BT) for cervical cancer effectively delivers high-dose, tumor-specific radiotherapy with few serious adverse effects on surrounding healthy tissue.

On June 13, the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that naturally occurring DNA cannot be subject to patent.