HPV Test to Clarify Borderline Pap Results

A new DNA-based in-situ hybridization (ISH) test detects high- and low-risk forms of human papilloma virus (HPV) in liquid-based cytology specimens and cervical tissue biopsies, helping doctors to clarify borderline Pap results.

After being tested with the new test, called Inform HPV, a patient can be put under a doctor's watch for cancer development rather than undergo a potentially unnecessary cervical biopsy. Each year, millions of women receive a diagnosis of atypical squamous cells of undetermined origin, or ASCUS. Inform HPV provides doctors with the diagnostic information needed to determine which patients are more likely to develop cervical cancer because of HPV's close association with cervical cancer.

Inform HPV is the product of Ventana Medical Systems, Inc. (Tucson, AZ, USA). The test is designed to be run on the company's high-throughput BenchMark system which allows standardized analysis of both histology and cytology samples. Ventana notes that the presence of HPV doesn't necessarily mean that cancer has developed. The Inform HPV test will allow physicians to look at cervical samples and see actual cell layers where the cancer can be lurking. "This is clearly a distinct advantage over traditional tests that primarily detect the presence of the virus and therefore result in a positive HPV test, even though there may be no evidence of cancer,” said Dr. Thomas Grogan, chief scientific officer and medical director at Ventana.



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