{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T06:12:14Z","timestamp":1779257534412,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779235200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100011447","name":"Science and Technology Department of Henan Province","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["231111521100"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["231111521100"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100011447","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Oncol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study evaluates the feasibility and clinical outcomes of squamocolumnar junction (SCJ)-targeted thermal ablation in patients with visible cervical lesions diagnosed as high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) or suspected HSIL, and explores changes in CK7-positive SCJ cells following treatment.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>In this prospective cohort study, 226 patients meeting predefined eligibility criteria between June 2017 and December 2024 were managed with either SCJ-targeted thermal ablation (n = 110) or loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP, n = 116), based on clinical assessment and patient preference. Outcomes included operative parameters, complications, cytological abnormalities, high-risk HPV (hrHPV) clearance, lesion persistence or recurrence, and changes in CK7-positive SCJ cells in a subset of patients.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Baseline clinicopathologic characteristics were broadly comparable between groups, although treatment allocation was non-randomized. SCJ ablation was associated with shorter operative time, minimal intraoperative blood loss, fewer procedure-related complications, and lower treatment cost compared with LEEP (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      &amp;lt; 0.05). During follow-up, rates of cytological abnormalities and lesion recurrence were low in both groups, with no progression to invasive carcinoma observed. A higher rate of hrHPV positivity was noted in the ablation group at 3 months (36.4% vs. 18.1%,\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u00a0=\u00a00.006), but this difference was not observed at subsequent time points. In a subset analysis, CK7-positive SCJ cells markedly decreased following both treatments, with no residual CK7-positive HSIL or SCJ cells identified post-treatment.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>In carefully selected patients with fully visible transformation zones, SCJ-targeted thermal ablation demonstrated favorable procedural outcomes and similar observed short- to mid-term clinical results compared with LEEP in this observational cohort. These findings support its potential as a tissue-conserving treatment option in selected cases. The reduction in CK7-positive SCJ cells suggests a possible biologic basis for SCJ-targeted therapy, although this remains exploratory. Given the non-randomized design and limited event rates, these findings should be interpreted with caution, and further prospective studies are warranted.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fonc.2026.1833596","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T05:46:29Z","timestamp":1779255989000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Thermal ablation for visible cervical HSIL or suspected HSIL: a tissue-conserving alternative to excision in selected patients"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Yan","family":"Zhou","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Henan Provincial People\u2019s Hospital, Zhengzhou University People\u2019s Hospital, Henan University People\u2019s Hospital","place":["Zhengzhou, Henan, 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Hospital, Zhengzhou University People\u2019s Hospital, Henan University People\u2019s Hospital","place":["Zhengzhou, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Rujia","family":"Fan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Henan Provincial People\u2019s Hospital, Zhengzhou University People\u2019s Hospital, Henan University People\u2019s Hospital","place":["Zhengzhou, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yue","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Henan Provincial People\u2019s Hospital, Zhengzhou University People\u2019s Hospital, Henan University People\u2019s Hospital","place":["Zhengzhou, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Wenxin","family":"Zheng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pathology, University of Texas 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