Reliance-owned Karkinos Healthcare crosses one lakh HPV DNA tests

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Karkinos Healthcare, a 100% step-down subsidiary of Reliance Industries Limited, has completed HPV DNA screening for over one lakh women across India, marking an important milestone in expanding access to high-quality cervical cancer screening and follow-up care.

Cervical cancer prevention is often limited not only by access to screening, but also by loss to follow-up after a positive result. Mumbai-based Karkinos Healthcare’s model addresses both challenges through World Health Organization-recommended HPV DNA testing and a digitally enabled continuum of care that integrates awareness, screening, tracking, triage, navigation, and follow-up.

The milestone has been achieved through multiple implementation models across diverse geographies, including public-health programmes, public-private partnerships, CSR supported initiatives, nurse-assisted and self-sampling programmes, district-level screening efforts, and focused outreach for underserved and high-risk communities.

A large share of the women reached are those who, by circumstance or distance, may not otherwise have had access to screening. The achievement demonstrates that high-quality HPV DNA testing can be delivered at scale in India through technology-driven care pathways. The learnings and infrastructure developed through this programme can support wider adoption of organised cervical cancer screening and contribute to India’s cervical cancer elimination efforts.

Commenting on this milestone, Dr Neerja Bhatla, Consultant, Early Detection and Women Wellness, Karkinos Healthcare, who is also a Padma Shri awardee and globally acclaimed leader in women’s health and oncology, said, “The evidence has been clear for some time that HPV DNA testing is the most reliable primary screen we have for cervical cancer. What matters now is not testing at scale alone but also ensuring that every woman who tests positive is carried through to diagnosis and treatment across the care continuum. A programme that can demonstrate that linkage at this volume, and well beyond the big cities, is exactly the direction India’s cervical cancer elimination effort needs.”