An integrated approach to secondary prevention of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

Secondary prevention of cervical precancer is aimed at preventing recurrence of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) after excisional treatment. Recurrence of CIN after surgical treatment occurs in 8.1–14.4% of cases, which increases the risk of developing cervical cancer (CC). Despite the high effectiveness of local surgical treatment of patients with high-grade intraepithelial lesions (HSIL), an increased risk of late diagnosis of cervical cancer has been proven in comparison with the risk in the general population. The review article presents current data on factors that increase the potential risk of recurrence of precancer. Human papillomavirus (HPV) persistence is considered one of the leading predictors of relapse of CIN2+, regardless of the type of excision treatment. The combination of persistent high-risk (HR) HPV and a positive sectional margin significantly increases the risk of persistent/recurrent CIN2+. A negative co-test after conization during follow-up contributes to a favorable prognosis and the development of HSIL is observed less frequently than in the population. Only an integrated approach, including detection of cervical HPV HR infection after excisional treatment of CIN, assessment of the radicality of resection and timely measures to eliminate ineffective treatment, as well as subsequent active monitoring of patients, allows avoiding its recurrence and progression of cervical precancer