Testing menstrual blood for HPV could be an alternative to smear test

A BMJ study tested HPV detection from menstrual blood collected on a sanitary pad in 3,068 women and found sensitivity for detecting CIN2 comparable to clinician-collected samples; the authors described the method as a possible non-invasive alternative, while noting the findings are observational.

Researchers tested whether menstrual blood collected on a regular sanitary pad with a sample strip can detect human papillomavirus (HPV). Current cervical screening in the UK usually involves a clinician taking a cervical sample with a small brush, and some people use home testing kits. Not everyone attends screening for reasons such as fear of pain, privacy concerns, stigma, or lack of awareness. The study compared menstrual pad samples with clinician-collected samples to evaluate detection of cervical cell abnormalities. Key findings: - The study enrolled 3,068 women aged 20 to 54 with regular menstrual cycles in a community in China between 2021 and 2025. - Each participant provided a menstrual blood sample collected on a sanitary pad with a strip, a clinician-collected cervical sample, and an additional sample collected by a health worker for lab processing. - Menstrual pad samples showed 94.7% sensitivity for detecting CIN2 compared with 92.1% sensitivity for clinician-collected samples. - Specificity was 89.1% for pad samples and 90.0% for clinician samples; the probability that a negative result truly indicated absence of disease was reported as identical for both methods. - Participants could access results and advice through the WeChat app as part of the study process. - Study authors said the results support using standardized menstrual blood–based HPV testing as a non-invasive alternative and suggested integration into national screening guidelines; they also noted the findings are observational. Summary: The study reported similar sensitivity for menstrual pad HPV testing and clinician-collected samples for detecting cervical cell changes, and authors described the method as a potential non-invasive alternative. Undetermined at this time.