Scientist finds cure for HPV infection, cervical cancer after 20 years of trying

In an incredible medical breakthrough that effectively puts an end to cervical cancer in women, researchers in Mexico have found a cure for the cancer-causing Human Papillomavirus infection. The researcher from Mexico’s National Polytechnic Institute (IPN) successfully cured 29 patients of HPV infection. This was done using a non-invasive treatment called photodynamic therapy that uses a drug, known as the ‘photosensitiser’, and light of a specific wavelength depending on the drug compound. [caption id=“attachment_6063521” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] Dr Eva Ramon Gallegos (middle) with her team. Image courtesy: National Polytechnic Institute[/caption] When the photosensitisers are exposed to the specific wavelength of light, they release a form of reactive oxygen that damaged the DNA in cells nearby. While HPV in the main cause of cervical cancer, there have also been HPV-negative cases. As cancer grows, the effectiveness of this treatment reduces from a 100 percent in HPV-infected patients that have not developed cancer to 64.3 percent of women that had both the virus and cervical cancer and 57 percent in women that had cancer but no HPV infection, according to an El Universal report. Human papillomavirus is a very common infection and widespread all over the world. There are at least 100 known variants of HPV, out of which at least 14 are known to be cervical cancer-causing.

This HPV cure comes at a time when cervical cancer cases are quickly becoming the leading cause for death among female cancer patients around the world, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement. The researchers specialise in early detection and photodynamic therapy to fight HPV and have succeeded in winning the ultimate battle — a 100 percent cure — after twenty years of tweaking the treatment.