# Innovative Rapid Enabling, Affordable, point-of-Care HPV Self-Testing Strategy (I-REACH)

> **NIH NIH U01** · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $466,565

## Abstract

Abstract
Each day, there are an estimated 28 cervical cancer deaths in Nigeria, making cervical cancer the second
most common cancer among women in the entire country. Only a minority of women eligible for screening
(screen-eligible) in Nigeria (30-49 years old) regularly, have received HPV screening - an essential component
of comprehensive cervical cancer prevention programs recommended by the Nigerian Federal Ministry of
Health and the Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Nigeria (SOGON). Conventional screening that relies
on Pap smears and visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) at centralized clinics, coupled with a lack of locally
relevant implementation strategies have stalled progress. Innovative strategies to decentralize screening and
increase women’s ownership in this process are urgently needed. In this proposal, we will adapt an existing
HPV assay that combines loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) and fast one-pot lyophilization
protocol within a lateral flow assay (LFA) for the Nigerian context, and then use participatory strategies
(crowdsourcing open calls and learning communities) to finalize components of a single woman-centered HPV
self-test kit. Crowdsourcing open calls have a group of individuals (i.e., screen-eligible women) solve all or part
of a problem, then implement selected high-quality solutions. Learning communities help participants refine
and optimize solutions before evaluation or use among screen-eligible women in Nigeria. Our collaborative
research team has successfully used crowdsourcing open calls and learning communities to increase HIV self-
testing among Nigerian youth, providing a strong foundation for the proposed research study. Our preliminary
data demonstrate that our HPV self-test prototype can reliably detect HPV 16 and 18 genotypes that account
for 70% of all cervical cancer cases. Once the prototype meets stringent diagnostic and trial preparedness
metrics among Nigerian women, including detection of additional common HPV genotypes (31, 35, and 52),
the project will move from the initial engineering phase (Specific Aim 1) to the clinical phase (Specific Aims 2
and 3). Drawing on a design and participatory action research framework, we propose the following specific
aims: (1) to adapt an HPV self-test assay for point-of-care and simultaneous detection of HPV genotypes 16,
18, 31, 35, and 52 in Nigeria; (2) to use crowdsourcing open calls and participatory learning communities
among screen-eligible women to finalize a single HPV self-testing implementation strategy (3) Determine
whether a final revised HPV self-testing strategy increases HPV screening among 900 screen-eligible women
in 18 local government areas versus usual care using a stepped-wedge, pragmatic randomized control trial.
Our study will be among the first to examine how women themselves can be prime movers in optimizing,
implementing and evaluating HPV self-testing implementation strategy that incorporates their unique nee...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10912477
- **Project number:** 5U01CA279863-03
- **Recipient organization:** WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** YIE-HWA CHANG
- **Activity code:** U01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $466,565
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-09-01 → 2028-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10912477

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10912477, Innovative Rapid Enabling, Affordable, point-of-Care HPV Self-Testing Strategy (I-REACH) (5U01CA279863-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10912477. Licensed CC0.

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