Cream Treats Precancerous Vulva Lesions Linked to HPV

Lisa — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 10:36:13 +0000

Dutch scientists have published a study showing a topical cream called imiquimod effectively treats lesions on the vulva before they become cancerous – a discovery that could one day help women exposed to the human papillomavirus (HPV) avoid cancer surgery on their genitals.

The American Cancer Society predicts that approximately 3,500 new cases of vulvar cancer will diagnosed in the US this year, and one-third to one-half of the cases will be related to infection with HPV.

This rare genital cancer is currently treated with chemotherapy, radiation or surgery to remove all of part of the patient’s vulva.

But new research conducted by Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam indicates precancerous vulva lesions can be reduced and, in some cases, eliminated completely by applying topical imiquimod cream before the HPV-infected cells have a chance to become malignant.

To arrive at the findings, the team studied 52 women with grade 2 or 3 vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia, commonly referred to as VIN. Half of the study group had 250 mg of 5 percent imiquimod cream applied to their lesions twice weekly for 16 weeks while the other half received a placebo. Their investigation revealed that 81 percent of the patients receiving the treatment experienced more than a 25 percent reduction in the size of their lesions and nine patients had their precancerous lesions disappear completely. None of the placebo patients experienced similar results.

The cream works by helping the body’s own immune system fight off HPV, but additional studies are needed to find out why some patients benefit from its impact while others do not.

The study’s author stressed that the cream was only tested as a treatment for precancerous lesions – not vulvar cancer itself, but she believes imiquimod should be considered as a “first choice treatment” to reduce the presence of HPV-associated lesions before they develop into cancer. As she explained,

“This is a disease that is normally treated by surgery, but that just takes away a lesion without getting at HPV, a common underlying root of the disease. So you have a chance that the lesion will come back, time and time again. But we found that the cream is a much less invasive and friendly way to get good lasting results.”

Dr Manon van Seters
Dept of Gynecology, Erasmus University Medical Center

Imiquimod cream has already been approved for the treatment of precancerous skin lesions and superficial basal cell carcinoma, a common form of skin cancer.

If you’d like to learn more about the imiquimod study, the findings have been published in the April 3, 2008, edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Source: HealthDay News Article from US News and World Report

Cancer Research Journal » Vulva Cancer

Cream Treats Precancerous Vulva Lesions Linked to HPV