• Presence of T-synthase or Cosmc mutation [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  
• Level of immunohistochemical staining for Tn antigen and sialyl Tn antigen [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  
• Differences in approximately 50 of the 400 genes on the customized glycogene expression array [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  
• Differences in 10 of the 300 carbohydrates under examination using the customized glycan array [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  

• Lymph node metastasis [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  
• Local control [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  
• Progression-free survival (recurrence and disease progression) [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  
• Overall survival [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  

OBJECTIVES:

Primary

• Determine whether the presence of a mutation in T-synthase or Cosmc and/or the presence of positive immunohistochemical expression of Tn antigen or sialyl Tn antigen in tumor specimens is associated with progression-free or overall survival in patients with stage IB2, II, III, or IVA cervical cancer undergoing pelvic and para-aortic (abdominal) lymphadenectomy.

Secondary

• Determine whether the presence of a mutation in T-synthase or Cosmc and/or the presence of positive immunohistochemical expression of Tn antigen or sialyl Tn antigen in tumor specimens is associated with lymph node metastasis or local control.
• Identify a glycoprotein profile from a customized gene expression array analysis in tumor specimens or a glycan profile from a customized glycan array in serum that is associated with lymph node metastasis, local control, disease recurrence/progression, or survival.
• Determine whether differences exist in T-synthase or Cosmc mutations, the immunohistochemical expression of Tn antigen or sialyl Tn antigen, and glycoprotein profiling (using customized gene expression array analysis) in matched primary tumor compared with metastatic lymph nodes that are associated with lymph node metastasis, local control, disease recurrence/progression, or survival.
• Identify differences in glycoprotein expression profiling and glycan profiling in tumor specimens with or without a mutation in T-synthase or Cosmc, or in tumor specimens with or without positive immunohistochemical expression of Tn antigen or sialyl Tn antigen that are associated with lymph node metastasis, local control, disease recurrence/progression, or survival.

OUTLINE: Primary and metastatic tumor specimens are collected during lymphadenectomy and used for tissue microarray analysis, mutational analysis of T-synthase and Cosmc, immunohistochemical staining of Tn antigen and sialyl Tn antigen, and customized gene expression array analysis of 400 genes associated with glycobiology. Pre-lymphadenectomy blood is collected from patients at baseline for customized glycan array analysis of 300 carbohydrates.

Patients are followed every 3 months for 2 years and then every 6 months for 3 years.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 286 patients will be accrued for this study.