FDA approves new HPV cervical cancer test

Apr 26 2014

The test was approved despite objections from some that the screening had not been adequately tested.

Modern Healthcare: FDA Approves First HPV Test For Primary Cervical-Cancer Screening
The first human papillomavirus DNA test to screen women for cervical cancer was approved Thursday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The stand-alone test can be used to assess whether women need to undergo additional testing and their risk of developing cervical cancer in the future (Rice, 4/24).

The New York Times: Alternative to Pap Test Is Approved By F.D.A.
A committee of outside advisers to the F.D.A. unanimously endorsed the Roche test in a meeting last month. But a coalition of 17 consumer, women's and health groups opposed the approval, arguing that the new screening method had not been adequately tested and could upend a practice that has successfully prevented cervical cancer for decades (Pollack, 4/24).