Cover Program Rose’s self-sampling HPV-PCR method is a game changer in cervical health, so what’s stopping us from getting our screenings? (Photo: Rose Foundation)
Program Rose’s self-sampling HPV-PCR method is a game changer in cervical health, so what’s stopping us from getting our screenings? (Photo: Rose Foundation)
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Program Rose’s self-sampling HPV-PCR method is a game changer in cervical health, so what’s stopping us from getting our screenings? Tatler Malaysia’s Front & Female editor finds out
Two months after my 30th birthday, I made my way hesitantly through the halls of University Malaya’s Innovation Incubator Complex on a Friday morning. I was visiting the Rose Foundation’s office and laboratory there.
I wasn’t nervous; I kept assuring myself, though a family member I lashed out at earlier that morning would have disagreed. The truth is I was tense. Screenings scare me. Trips to the hospital (or even hospital-adjacent academic buildings) creep me out. Given half the chance, I would have found any excuse to postpone the HPV-PCR test I was about to do at Rose Foundation. But I also thought, if not now, then when?
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The team at Rose Foundation seemed to understand. In between a short but informative briefing, their encouraging comments put me more at ease. Rose Foundation was founded in 2019 as a non-profit organisation dedicated to eliminating cervical cancer in Malaysia. A big part of its strategy for tackling this monumental task is screening as many women in Malaysia as possible.
Above Program Rose demonstration on how to use the HPV-PCR swab
Program Rose demonstration on how to use the HPV-PCR swab
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This is done through Program Rose, an initiative offering women comprehensive cervical screening through a self-sampling approach and a mobile-based digital health platform that facilitates follow-ups and linkage to care for treatment if required.
Quick and painless with a test sensitivity of 90 per cent (about 40 per cent higher than a papsmear), this HPV-PCR self-swab test indicates the presence of the Human Papillomavirus or HPV, which is linked to cervical cancer.
To be eligible for Program Rose’s HPV-PCR test, a woman must be 30 to 65 years of age and someone who hasn’t done a HPV test in at least five years. Pregnant women and those with a heavy menstruation flow at the time of testing are also not encouraged to take the test.
Before the briefing, my phone number and identity card number were recorded so that these details could be printed clearly on a test tube containing the swab I would be using. During the briefing, I am told how to use the swab to collect a sample.
“It’s not going to be painful, right?” I ask the team for what must be the tenth time, only to be assured that it is a painless process, though at most one might experience some slight discomfort. The auto-generated WhatsApp message from Program Rose on my phone tells me my registration is complete. I went to a bathroom, did the swab test, and came out none the worse for wear.
A chat with Program Rose director of community development, Dr Khoo Su Pei, tells me a little more about the test I have just taken and why it’s such a pivotal step in preventing women from suffering needlessly from cervical cancer in their lifetime. I say ‘needlessly’ here because cervical cancer is one of the few cancers that can be prevented, according to Rose Foundation founding trustee and advisor Professor Dr Woo Yin Ling, who is also a consultant gynaecological oncologist at Universiti Malaya Medical Centre.
“Extensive research and emerging evidence tell us that if we [first] vaccinate our girls against HPV, [second] screen women as few as twice in their lifetime, and [third] ensure women have access to treatment, we can eliminate cervical cancer in our lifetime,” Woo says.
All that’s left now is to wait three weeks for the test results notification to be WhatsApped to me. As Khoo emphasises again, testing positive for high-risk HPV is not a death sentence and does not mean you will get cervical cancer. For most women, even high-risk HPV infections tend to clear from the body naturally before they cause any problems. If the infection persists for a long time to the point that abnormal cells develop in the cervix, it takes around 10 to 15 years for it to develop into cervical cancer.
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10 to 15 years. That’s enough time to seek treatment, take the necessary precautions, and curtail what would be a devastating event affecting a woman’s life and her family. The knowledge alone offers a staggering sense of agency against a disease that affects us all so immensely.
Above My results came in almost 2 weeks after I did the test
My results came in almost 2 weeks after I did the test
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If the human papillomavirus is present in the test, Khoo says, then a follow-up check-up and colposcopy procedure is scheduled to ensure that there are no problematic cells present in the cervix. If your test comes back clear, you’ll be advised to repeat it in another five to 10 years’ time.
All that said, the indecision around getting a screening is understandable. I’ve heard doctors recounting how many women stay away from mammograms and other breast screenings for fear of the actual test itself without really seeing the ramifications of the bigger picture. But it’s equally important to realise that a little discomfort in the beginning can save a lot of heartache and struggle later on.
The cost of Program Rose’s HPV-PCR test is RM300 per self-paying woman. Heavily subsidised or free-of-charge test for B40 communities as well as tailored corporate screening packages are available at Program ROSE. Find out more by calling ROSE Foundation at 03-8408 2211 or visiting www.programrose.org
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Previously contributing to Esquire Malaysia, Expat Lifestyle and Newsweek, Tania oversees digital stories across Tatler’s key content pillars, also leading the Front & Female platform exploring issues and topics affecting women today.
