With funding from North West Cancer Research, Dr Jennifer Davies and her team are investigating whether self-collected urine or vaginal samples could help detect HPV and cervical cell changes, making screening more accessible.
Cervical screening saves lives, but there can be barriers to attending.
Work, childcare, disability, difficulty getting an appointment, embarrassment and the speculum examination itself can all make screening more difficult. Cervical screening uptake is now at its lowest level in 20 years.
Dr Jennifer Davies and her team at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, Lancaster University and the University of Manchester are investigating whether there could be another way.
With funding from North West Cancer Research, the Alternative CErvical Screening (ACES) Spectroscopy project will explore whether self-collected urine or vaginal samples could be used to test for HPV and detect cervical cell changes that can develop into cervical cancer.
Self-sampling gives people the opportunity to collect a urine or vaginal sample at home and send it to a laboratory to test for human papillomavirus (HPV).
Dr Davies’s team has already shown that urine self-sampling is as accurate as vaginal sampling and as reliable as routine cervical screening. This could make screening easier and more accessible, particularly for people who find it difficult to attend appointments.
At the moment, someone who receives a positive HPV result from a self-sample still needs to attend cervical screening so further tests can check for cervical cell changes.
The team will investigate spectroscopy, which uses light to examine what a sample is made of. Patterns produced by the light may show chemical changes linked to cervical disease.
People referred to clinic following an abnormal cervical screening result will provide urine, vaginal and cervical samples alongside their usual care. Researchers will compare spectroscopy results with HPV testing and clinical findings to see how accurately the technique can identify early changes in cervical cells.
If successful, the research could help develop a quick, painless and reliable test, making cervical screening easier and more accessible.
