On March 12, 2014 a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel unanimously recommended that FDA approve a new HPV DNA test for primary screening of cervical cancer in the US. The new test, developed by Roche, is recommended for women aged 25 and older, and can detect high-risk HPV, as well as high-risk HPV types 16 and 18. Several distinguished guests spoke in favor of HPV primary screening, including Dr. Mark Schiffman from the National Cancer Institute, Dr. Walter Kinney from Kaiser Permanente, Dr. Warner Huh from the University of Alabama, and our Director of CCFC, Dr. Jennifer Smith.
If FDA approves the advisory panel’s recommendation, it would mark a major change in US screening guidelines. Details of the panel’s recommendation and the new test are available here.