Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) has partnered with Camtech Health to enhance access to cervical cancer screening in Singapore by introducing a self-collection human papillomavirus (HPV) test for women to use at home.
This initiative aims to address the low screening rates in Singapore, where less than half of the eligible women undergo testing.
The collaboration combines the Camtech Health HPV test for self-collection and the BD Onclarity HPV Assay, which detects 14 high-risk HPV genotypes.
The World Health Organization's Global Strategy to Accelerate the Elimination of Cervical Cancer has set targets for HPV vaccination, screening coverage, and treatment access by 2030, and this programme supports these goals.
Camtech Health chairman Kuok Meng-Han said: “Making at-home self-collection available is the first step to empowering health and well-being, but making the test easy to use is just as important.
“The Camtech Health HPV test with the Camtech Health app is completed in simple steps and then sent via postage-paid packaging provided in the kit.
“The sample is analysed using the BD Onclarity HPV assay, and the BD Viper LT fully automated integrated molecular testing system, and physician-reviewed results are provided on the app with a virtual consultation to discuss any abnormalities.”
BD’s Onclarity HPV Assay is a clinically validated test that provides genotyping information from specimens collected for screening purposes, compatible with multiple preservative solutions.
The assay is the only test approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that identifies an extended set of HPV types individually, including types that are particularly high-risk in Singapore.
It has received the CE Mark for HPV screening from at-home self-collected vaginal samples.
Comprising a large group of viruses each identified by a unique genotype, HPVs are the cause of cervical cancer.
In December 2023, BD’s new fingertip blood collection device, BD MiniDraw Capillary Blood Collection System, secured 510(k) clearances from the FDA.
