Czech Republic Law Helps Digene

Terence Chea / Washington Post 17nov00

Digene Corp. suggested today that its business could be spurred by a Czech Republic decision to require testing for human papillomavirus (HPV), the cause of almost all cases of cervical cancer in women, as part of the country’s cervical cancer screening program.

The Gaithersburg biotechnology company makes genetic tests for women’s cancers, infectious diseases and blood viruses. Its gene-based HPV test is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a secondary test to the pap smear for cervical cancer screening.

The Czech Ministry of Health recommends HPV testing as the primary test for women 35 years of age and older, and as a follow-up test for women under 35. The new legislation also calls for full reimbursement by the country’s national health insurance program.

The Czech Republic is the first European country to introduce legislation to incorporate HPV testing as a primary test into its national cervical cancer prevention program.

"This announcement is an important milestone in the field of HPV testing," said Even Jones, Digene’s chairman and chief executive, in a statement. "We are optimistic that other national screening programs that are evaluating the use of HPV testing as a primary screen will also move to incorporate this new technology into their standards of care."

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