Cervical cancer is the third most common cancer in women worldwide, affecting over 500,000 women and resulting in approximately 275,000 deaths every year.
The American Cancer Society estimates that 95 percent of cervical cancers could be prevented or effectively cured if caught early through regular, standard Pap tests and human papillomavirus (HPV) screening.
In the United States most women have access to cervical cancer screening, yet ~4,000 women die every year from cervical cancer in the US and it is estimated that ~30% of US women do not receive regular pap screenings according to CDC.
Genentech started The Quest Award to solicite bold new solutions from start-up and healthcare communities in an effort to identify viable and impactful digital solutions options in the fight against cervical cancer.
The Startup Challenge launched in January 2016 during Cervical Cancer Awareness month. More than 3,000 entrepreneurs were invited to participate and submit their solutions in five categories: Awareness, Education, Screening Technologies, Reducing Stigma and Other. The judging team selected five finalists who were invited to a live event to pitch their idea.
The finalist event brought together leaders from the provider, payer, patient, therapeutics, tech, and funding arenas to celebrate the shared commitment to fight Cervical Cancer and giving women a better chance to avoid this deadly disease. The event took place in San Francisco in April 2016. The top five teams presented their solutions in person to a live panel of judges, who awarded the Genentech-sponsored unconditional cash prize of $50k to support the further development of the winning idea.
AND continued mentorship by Genentech for one year post-award with quarterly check-ins
Cervical Cancer Statistics for Non-screeners:
Based on a patient survey with women of the age 21-65 who were not screened in the past 5 years, 56% of non-screeners had health insurance and a primary care physician. The “Under-engaged population” are unscreened largely due to lack of awareness reasons. See more information in the 2015 Cervical Cancer Patient Survey.
Other useful links:
How can we make women aware of the need to be screened per guidelines?
How can we educate women about this disease and available resources?
How can we make the screening process easier and more effective?
How can we reduce stigma and cultural barriers?
Board Member and Operating Advisor, Rock Health
Executive Director, Foundation for Women's Cancer
Founder, HealthTech Capital and MedStars
Megan J. Huchko
MD, MPH, Associate Professor, UCSF School of Medicine
Krishnansu S. Tewari
MD, FACOG, FACS, Professor & Director of Research, Division Gyn Oncology, UC Irvine
Vice President, Health Policy American Sexual Health Association
Winnie H. Wan
Chairman and CEO, OncoHealth Corp
Managing Director, Singularity University
Strategic Partnerships Director, StartUp Health
VP, Portfolio Development at McKesson Ventures
Founder/Managing Director, HealthTech Capital
Richard T. Penson, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Clinical Director Medical Gyneologic Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital
Thomas Herzog, MD
Clinical Director, University of Cincinnati Cancer Institute, Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Innovation & Strategic Partnerships Leader, Humana
Ronald D. Alvarez, MD
Professor, Division of Gynecologic Oncology at the University of Alabama-Birmingham.
Over 10 million women living in U.S. have limited access to a colposcopist, yet represent 72% of abnormal Pap results. This leads to loss to follow up and high rates of cancer. MobileODT's Enhanced Visual Assessment (EVA) System closes this gap by enabling primary care providers to perform colposcopy and consult with expert gynecologists. EVA is an internet-connected mobile colposcope with real time decision support, making remote training of primary care providers possible, integrating longitudinal quality control and quality improvement.
Antiva’s goal is to end cervical cancer before it starts. We aim to develop the first FDA-approved drug to treat pre-cancerous cervical lesions (CIN) caused by HPV. With four weekly doses of a topical cream self-administered intravaginally, we want to make clearing CIN as easy as curing a yeast infection. Our dual-acting drug is designed to rapidly clear all stages of CIN and be effective against all strains of HPV.
HerSwab™ is a beautiful, functional self-sampling device for cervical cancer screening. It enables women to conveniently collect their own high quality DNA samples to test for HPV. HerSwab™’s unique design is simple to use and “automatically” collects a targeted sample from close to the cervix. This saves time, provides privacy and minimizes invasiveness for patients. Self-sampling has been shown to reduce barriers to screening, and to be a cost-effective way to increase participation amongst underscreened women.
We have developed a low-cost ultraportable Point of Care Tampon (POCkeT) colposcope and have demonstrated the ability of our system to capture cervical images that are comparable to images captured with a $20,000 digital colposcope. The device is attached and powered by a smartphone and has the following features: image visualization, capture, storage and transmission. Our system addresses the shortcoming of a primary screening exam by combining the merits of both a primary and secondary screen in one device.
UDoTest comprises of a young and innovative team who care about cancer and access to easy, accurate screening. UDoTest’s start-to-finish service educates and carefully guides a lady through the self-testing service, which includes ordering, shipping, education, doctors recommendations, counselling and assistance with treatment. Based in South Africa, we have experience in both the underpriviledged and the under-engaged markets. And we know that women lack the time to screen and the education on HPV. UDoTest effectively, comfortably and conveniently solves that.