Molecular analysis of cervical cancer

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  Analysis of the tumour immune microenvironment in cervical cancer

• IRAS ID

  346344

• Contact name

  Tim Fenton

• Contact email

  t.r.fenton@soton.ac.uk

• Sponsor organisation

  University of Southampton

• Duration of Study in the UK

  4 years, 2 months, 30 days

• Research summary

  Cervical cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women worldwide. The commonest type of cervical cancer is cervical squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC). In our previously published research, we have shown that CSCC can be divided into two categories (C1 and C2) based on their ‘molecular fingerprint’. Patients with C2 cancers fare worse than patients with C1 cancers. The reasons for this are not yet well understood but appear to be due to differences in the cells that surround the cancer, including immune cells and cells that provide structural support (stromal cells). The environment in which cancer cells live is thought to play an important role in determining how the cancer responds to treatment.
  
  In this project, we will use a technology called single cell sequencing to take a detailed look at the genes expressed by each individual cell (including cancerous cells, immune cells and stromal cells) within a set of CSCC samples previously donated by patients. By studying differences between C1 and C2 tumours in such fine detail, we hope to provide new insights into the biology of CSCC, to understand why C2 tumours behave so aggressively and to identify new targets for cervical cancer treatment.

  We will be using recently developed methods to isolate single cells from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue samples. This means we can use sections from the same paraffin blocks we analysed for our previous work, and these samples will be sent by our collaborators in Austria and Norway. All samples were collected under local ethical approval from consented patients.
  

• REC name

  London - Brighton & Sussex Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  24/PR/0865

• Date of REC Opinion

  2 Aug 2024

• REC opinion

  Favourable Opinion