Qiagen HPV test for developing countries ‘could cut cancer risk by half’

Qiagen has demonstrated the potential of a new HPV test at the 24th international papillomavirus conference in Beijing.

Developed with support from Path, a non-profit global health organisation, the FastHPV test is believed to reduce the incidence of cervical cancer by as much as 56 per cent if given three times over a woman’s life and combined with appropriate treatment.

It has been specially designed to allow women in areas with scarce healthcare resources, such as China and India, to benefit from the advanced technology of HPV testing.

Peer Schatz, chief executive of Qiagen, pointed out that it is "relatively common" for healthcare companies to provide their products and services at reduced prices to countries with minimal healthcare infrastructure and large low-income populations.

"With our new FastHPV test, Qiagen has gone beyond that standard approach and has specifically adapted the HPV DNA test it sells in the developed world to meet the special needs of women and their healthcare providers in these very challenging settings," he observed.

The human papillomavirus is the primary cause of cervical cancer, which affects nearly 500,000 women around the world every year and kills more than 250,000, of which 80 per cent are in developing countries.