Low-Cost One-Hour HPV Test to Transform Cervical Cancer Screening

Cervical cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer death in women worldwide, despite being largely preventable. Each year, more than 350,000 women die from the disease, and nearly 90% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries with limited access to reliable screening. Existing HPV DNA tests require expensive laboratory equipment, delaying results and preventing timely treatment. A new low-cost test now promises faster detection and same-day care for cervical cancer.

Researchers at Rice University (Houston, TX, USA), working with colleagues in Mozambique and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, TX, USA), have developed a simple HPV test using loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). The test requires no DNA extraction and runs at a single temperature, enabling rapid processing. A cervicovaginal swab is chemically lysed, added to LAMP reagents, incubated for about 45 minutes in a portable heater, and read by fluorescence.

The assay targets HPV16, HPV18, and HPV45—responsible for around 75% of cervical cancers—and includes a built-in control to verify sample quality. Designed to work outside conventional laboratories, the test can be performed in under an hour using a battery-powered device, ideal for clinics without reliable electricity. The cost is projected at less than USD 8 per test, significantly lower than traditional methods.

Clinical validation showed strong results, according to the research published in Nature Communications. In 38 samples from Houston, the test achieved 100% agreement with the reference standard. In 191 samples from Maputo, Mozambique, it reached 93% agreement, demonstrating reliability in both high-resource and low-resource settings.

The test’s accessibility opens the door to “screen-and-treat” strategies where women can be screened and treated in a single visit, reducing loss to follow-up. By cutting costs, eliminating complex lab requirements, and delivering results quickly, the tool could help countries meet the WHO’s target to screen 70% of women globally by 2030. Researchers are working to expand coverage to additional HPV types and develop freeze-dried reagents for easier transport.

“Our goal is a complete, field-ready kit that community clinics can use anywhere. If we can help health systems move to same-day screen-and-treat, we can move towards a future where cervical cancer can be eliminated globally,” said Rebecca Richards-Kortum, Malcolm Gillis University Professor of Bioengineering and co-director of the Rice360 Institute for Global Health Technologies at Rice University.

Related Links:
Rice University
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center