Objective To explore the value of combined detection of serum mitogen-activated protein kinase 1 (MAPK1) and lysyl oxidase-like protein 2 (LOXL2) in early diagnosis of cervical cancer.

Methods A total of 218 patients with cervical lesions were selected as study group (103 cases in cervical cancer group, 115 cases in benign tumor group). Additionally, 100 patients with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade Ⅱ were selected as precancerous lesion group, and 79 healthy individuals undergoing physical examinations during the same period were selected as control group. Serum levels of MAPK1 and LOXL2 were measured in each group. Pearson correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlations of serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels in patients with cervical cancer. Logistic regression analysis was performed to screen influencing factors for the occurrence of cervical cancer. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted to assess the diagnostic efficacy of serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 for cervical cancer.

Results Serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels in the study group were higher than those in the precancerous lesion group and the control group, and those in the precancerous lesion group were higher than those in the control group, with statistically significant differences (P < 0.05). The proportion of patients with high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels in the cervical cancer group were higher than those in the benign tumor group, with statistically significant differences (P < 0.05). Serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels in patients with stage Ⅲ to Ⅳ cervical cancer were higher than those in patients with stage Ⅰ to Ⅱ cervical cancer, with statistically significant differences (P < 0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels in patients with cervical cancer (r=0.468, P < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that high-risk HPV infection, MAPK1 and LOXL2 were all influencing factors for the occurrence of cervical cancer (P < 0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) for combined diagnosis of serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 was 0.911, which was significantly greater than the AUCs for individual diagnoses (0.848 and 0.843, respectively).

Conclusion Serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels in patients with cervical cancer are significantly upregulated, and the two indicators were positively correlated. High-risk HPV infection, serum MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels were influencing factors for the occurrence of cervical cancer. Combined detection of MAPK1 and LOXL2 levels is expected to assist in the diagnosis of cervical cancer.