This human-mouse experimental model allows us to actually create cancer cells and study how they grow, which is something that wasn't possible before. The researchers grafted tissues from the human cervix's squamo-columnar junction, the site where nearly all cervical cancers originate, into the mice. The researchers then examined the tissue to see how each stage of the disease, including pre-cancerous stages, progressed in the model. The researchers found preliminary evidence of the Human Papilloma Virus in nearly all the abnormal cervical growths in the model, including cancer. As they continue their studies, they expect to learn more about how the virus behaves.
Viruses typically cause disease by interweaving their DNA with the DNA of the host cells.
By mapping out how the Human Papilloma Virus integrates itself into cervical cells, the scientists hope to gain greater understanding of how the virus contributes to the disease's development. In addition, the researchers found that high doses of estrogen appeared to result in non-cancerous growths in the cervical tissue. In future studies, the researchers hope to find out which of these growths in the cervix lead to cancer and which tend to be harmless. They also plan experiments with the Human Papilloma Virus to see what cancers result from the virus' infection of human tissue. We can now find out exactly what it takes to turn normal tissues into cancerous ones.