Kenya: Medical experts in Kenya are excited that a new advanced technique of screening for cervical cancer may help in the fight against the killer disease ravaging thousands of women.
The technique, dubbed Cobas HPV test, looks for genetic material (DNA) of the Human Papilloma Virus believed to cause cervical cancer and captures 14 strains of the virus that are known to be lethal.
Currently, women screening for cancer in Kenya mostly rely on pap smear, a traditional test that involves laboratory examination of cells from the cervix, while others go for visual examination of the cervix.
But recently, the US Food and Drug Administration, which regulates medicines in that country, approved a HPV test called Cobas that can be used alone for screening for cervical cancer instead of Pap smear. The test is expected to be used widely in Kenya.
This development comes amid increasing calls to enhance the screening and prevention of the disease. Cancer of the cervix is the second most common cancer among women in the country, after breast cancer.
Dr Ahmed Kalebi, a consultant pathologist and head of Pathologists Lancet Kenya, said the new HPV test will boost the fight against the disease.
“The HPV test is the newest advance that is set to revolutionise and simplify cervical cancer screening as it is simple and effective. It will enhance the fight against cervical cancer,” he says.
Kalebi, also an honorary lecturer at the University of Nairobi, added that the HPV test can even help one know if their risk of developing cervical cancer is high or low.
“If the HPV test is negative, the woman is not exposed to developing cervical cancer from HPV and can even be vaccinated against the virus through a HPV vaccine. On the other hand, if the HPV test is positive, the woman will undergo further testing through Pap smear to see if there are any pre-cancerous changes that need to be treated” he explains.
Aga Khan University Hospital obstetrician/gyneacologist Dr. Patricia Muthaura, said the HPV test would be an additional screening test, which may reduce the frequency of testing for those whose results are negative.
“The HPV is more sensitive than a Pap smear. Those with a negative test are very unlikely to develop cervical cancer or cervical dysplasia and will not need to be tested for another five years. This may improve screening rates as a lot of women shy away from pelvic examinations,” said Dr Muthaura.
Dr Kalebi said the price for the HPV test is likely to go down once mass use begins, owing to economy of scale and reduced cost of equipment used. However, testing guidelines of using HPV test alone are yet to be adopted in Kenya.
National Guidelines for Cancer Management Kenya indicates 2,454 women are diagnosed with the disease every year.