The Food and Drug Administration approved the first at-home cervical cancer screening tool in May. It gives women an alternative to Pap smears, which are invasive and can be painful or traumatic.
Teal Health’s “Wand” is a sponge-like tool that collects a sample by swabbing the vagina. By contrast, a Pap smear involves inserting a speculum and scraping cells from the cervix.
Experts say the self-administered test is about as accurate at detecting HPV as a Pap test. HPV is the virus known to cause cervical cancer.
Similar vaginal tests were approved in 2024, but only for use in medical offices.
Unbiased. Straight Facts.TM
Each year in the United States, about 11,500 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer, and about 4,000 die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
How do I get a test?
The tests can be ordered online through Teal Health’s website. Patients will then speak with a telehealth provider, collect their sample and mail it to be tested.
If the test comes back positive for HPV, Teal Health will refer the patient for an in-person doctor’s appointment. If it’s negative, no further screening will be needed for three to five years — the same interval that experts recommend for HPV testing.
The initial test kits will be mailed to patients in California next month before they become available in other states.
Teal Health has not posted a set price for the tests listed on its website. However, CEO and co-founder Kara Egan told The New York Times the company is working with insurers to secure coverage. Teal is also seeking donations to subsidize tests for uninsured patients.
Patients may use health spending accounts and flexible spending accounts to cover the cost of the test.
Why is regular HPV testing important?
According to the National Cancer Institute, about one in five U.S. women is overdue for cervical cancer screening. Cervical cancer has been identified as one of the top preventable causes of death in the United States. HPV is the leading cause.
About 11,500 U.S. women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The disease kills about 4,000 women in the United States annually.
A University of Alabama study found about two-thirds of cervical cancers are diagnosed in women who are not screened within the recommended interval of every three to five years.
What can I do to prevent cervical cancer?
Experts say the best way to prevent cervical cancer is by preventing HPV, which can be done with a vaccine. It’s given as a series of either two or three doses, depending on age at initial vaccination.
The CDC recommends the HPV vaccine at 11 or 12 years old, but it can be started as early as age 9.
Adults who have not gotten the vaccine are still eligible until they’re 26.
