Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 14, 2026
12:34
Collection, Isolation, and Flow Cytometric Analysis of Human Endocervical Samples
Published on: July 6, 2014
Vaginal Microbiota Composition and HPV Genotype-Specific CIN2+ Risk: A Cross-Sectional Study
Alexandru Hamod1, Razvan Popovici1, Mihaela Oancea2
1Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania.
Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland)
|May 13, 2026
Summary
Vaginal microbiome markers, like Lactobacillus depletion, can improve cervical cancer screening by predicting CIN2+ outcomes beyond current tests. This approach may be most beneficial for HPV-16-negative women.
Area of Science:
- Gynecology
- Microbiome research
- Cervical cancer screening
Background:
- Vaginal microbiome dysbiosis is linked to HPV persistence and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) progression.
- The added prognostic value of microbiome markers beyond existing triage assays is not well-established.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess if Lactobacillus depletion and Shannon diversity improve CIN2+ and CIN3+ prediction beyond CINtec and HPV-16 genotyping.
- To evaluate the incremental discriminative performance of microbiome markers in cervical cancer screening.
Main Methods:
- Secondary analysis of a cross-sectional study with 82 women undergoing cervical screening.
- Modified Poisson regression to estimate associations with CIN2+, CIN3+, and CINtec positivity.
- Assessed incremental predictive value using AUC, DeLong's test, NRI, and IDI.
Main Results:
- HPV-16 was the strongest predictor for CIN2+ and CIN3+.
- Lactobacillus depletion showed significant prognostic value in HPV-16-negative women.
- Microbiome markers significantly improved CIN2+ prediction when added to CINtec + HPV-16, particularly for non-events.
Conclusions:
- Vaginal microbiome markers, especially Lactobacillus depletion, offer significant incremental value for predicting CIN2+.
- Microbiome-based triage may enhance cervical cancer screening effectiveness, particularly in HPV-16-negative individuals.
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