Liquid biopsy for detection of endometrial cancer- Version 1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Endometrial cancer risk stratification using mathematical modelling, biomarker analysis and radiomics
IRAS ID
308986
Contact name
Jayanta Chatterjee
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 3 months, 1 days
Research summary
Endometrial cancer is the fourth most common cancer amongst women but the most common gynaecological malignancy in the Western world. While the 5-years survival rate for endometrial cancer is high, incidence and death rates of endometrial cancer are rising making strategies for early detection and prevention a priority.
At present, 2D ultrasound is used in the assessment of women with post-menopausal bleeding to determine risk of endometrial cancer. Post-menopausal women with an endometrial thickness of >4mm require an endometrial biopsy however there is only a 14% probability of cancer in those with a thickened endometrium resulting in invasive and painful endometrial biopsy for many women who do not have endometrial cancer. At present there is no routinely used non-invasive biomarker that could be used to detect cancer with a similar performance to endometrial biopsy. This has limited the utilisation of endometrial cancer screening techniques at present.
This study therefore aims to find and assess a simple, minimally invasive endometrial cancer screening tool that can triage women for diagnostic workup, whilst safely reassuring those at low risk. This tool might take the form of a blood or urine biomarker, a biophysical measure obtained through ultrasound imaging or a combination of two or more markers in conjunction. In order to do this, we will recruit patients referred to rapid access clinic for suspected endometrial cancer. The study will aim to assess 50 cases of endometrial cancer or atypical endometrial hyperplasia and 50 patients found to have no cancer after assessment. Recruitment will last approximately two years. The study aims to validate a biomarker that could be used in conjunction with the neural networking risk stratification algorithm developed by the same team which assesses individual risk factors such as BMI and parity to give an individualised risk assessment for endometrial cancer in asymptomatic women.
REC name
South West - Frenchay Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/SW/0013
Date of REC Opinion
24 Apr 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion