BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) and Healthians have partnered to increase access to cervical cancer screening in India through innovative at-home self-collection kits. This initiative aims to overcome barriers like social stigma, embarrassment, fear, inconvenience, and lack of time that hinder women to undergo routine cervical cancer screenings. The self-collection method enables women to collect samples for HPV testing, aiming to improve cervical cancer screening rates in India, where less than 2 per cent of women are screened.
The initiative will increase awareness and accessibility of cervical cancer screening, leveraging Healthians' experience in diagnostics and BD's medical technology expertise across 250+ cities. This collaborative initiative aligns with the World Health Organization's Global Strategy to Accelerate the Elimination of Cervical Cancer and further aims to achieve 90 per cent HPV vaccination, 70 per cent screening, and 90 per cent treatment access by 2030.
Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women in India and those aged 15-44, with 123907 diagnosed and 77348 deaths. Over 95 per cent of cervical cancer cases are caused by persistent genital high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. Mr. Deepak Sahni, Founder & Chairman, of Healthians, and Mr. Atul Grover, MD, BD India/South Asia mentioned that these HPV self-testing kits will offer women a convenient platform to get tested in privacy as the key to prevention and patient safety lies in timely screening.
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