HPV Test for Detecting Oncogenes

A study of a test for the human papilloma virus (HPV) has shown that in a population which includes a greater number of abnormal samples than a routine population, the new test demonstrated higher sensitivity and specificity than a DNA test currently in use.


Called In-Cell HPV, the new test detects E6 and E7 messenger RNA, which the developer says is more directly correlated to cancer than HPV. In the study of 250 patient samples, the In-Cell test demonstrated a sensitivity of 83.3%, while the sensitivity of a DNA test was 64.2%. Moreover, the In-Cell test detected all cases of advanced-stage cancer, while the DNA test missed one case. The specificity of the new test was 91.4% vs 87.3% for the DNA test.

The test was developed by Molecular Diagnostics, Inc. (Chicago, IL, USA). The study was presented at the 11th World Congress of Cervical Pathology and Colposcopy in Barcelona (Spain) by Dr. Ralph M. Richart, professor of pathology at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons (New York, NY, USA).

"These results, while early, indicate that In-Cell HPV appears to be highly sensitive to detecting advanced lesions,” said Dr. Richart. "It has the potential to detect lesions rather than HPV infections.”




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Molecular Diagnostics, Inc