Evaluation of Human Papillomavirus detection tests for the improved diagnosis of cervical disease

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) causes cervical cancer. Cervical screening (smear test) to detect early signs of cervical disease has been a highly successful strategy. The current screening test, which detects changes in the way the cell look, is changing to a test that identifies if a woman is infected with the virus, HPV. There are over 200 tests available in the market that can identify HPV. Evaluation of the tests to assess their performance before they are used in routine clinical management of women is very essential. The aim of this project is to evaluate new HPV tests using well annotated samples from the Scottish HPV Archive, which is a biobank of cervical smear samples from routine cervical screening in Scotland, and acts as a resource for research into HPV related disease.