Roche Launches Broadest Portfolio For Cervical Cancer Screening

Roche announced the launch of its most comprehensive portfolio yet for cervical cancer screening labeled CINtec PLUS Cytology Kit. The technology will improve the detection and early intervention against pre-cancerous cervical disease.

COO Division Roche Diagnostics’ Roland Diggelmann said, “Cervical cancer is the third most common cancer in women worldwide and there are often no symptoms associated with cervical pre-cancer. With the launch of the fully automated CINtec PLUS Cytology Kit, Roche has the most comprehensive cervical cancer screening portfolio in the industry, helping to protect women from cervical cancer and from overtreatment. The comprehensive portfolio shows our strong commitment to advancing women’s health and setting new healthcare standards.”

The CINtec PLUS Cytology Kit is designed to identify women with high-grade pre-cancerous cervical lesions who might be candidates for immediate colposcopy. Compared to Pap smear, the test demonstrated greater efficacy in the detection of cervical pre-cancer, Roche said.

One of the most common root causes of all types of cervical cancer are human papillomavirus (HPV) infections. Women with persistent HPV infections and who have developed high-grade pre-cancerous cervical disease are the only ones who should be treated. Roche said it developed CINtec PLUS to help distinguish those HPV infections that are most likely to lead to cancer from those that will not. Early detection is key in stopping cervical cancer, one of the most preventable and curable type of cancer.

Over 500,000 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed every year around the world. Half of diagnosed patients lose their lives as a result of cervical cancer. However, the disease is preventable through routine screening especially when women with pre-cancerous lesions are treated before cancer develops. If treated early, the disease’s progress can be arrested with patients’ survival rate reaching up to 90%. If the disease has advanced at the time of diagnosis, the average patients’ five-year survival rate plunges at around 20%.

The CINtec PLUS Cytology Kit is fully automated and is available in Europe, Asia, Canada, and Latin America.