Public-Private Partnerships for the Development of New Devices for Screening and Treatment of Cervical Precancer for Emerging Economies

Abstract

Abstract 74 PATH is a nonprofit organization involved in the development of new technologies for screening and treatment of precancerous lesions of the uterine cervix for the last 25 years. PATH had private-public partnerships with four private companies for the design, development, improvement, and/or field validation of two new technologies for screening (careHPV and OncoE6 Cervical Test) and two devices for treatment (CryoPen and the Liger Thermal Coagulator). This experience allows us to identify some commonalities among those companies: they all had the technical or scientific background for developing or improving the technologies needed, they were committed to creating technologies suitable for emerging economies, and their knowledge or presence in low-resource countries was limited. The characteristics of our collaboration with the private companies varied depending on the initial status of the technology. Two of the companies already had marketed technologies that required adaptation for suitability in low-resource settings, and the role of PATH was to support the planning and modification of the technology, bench and field testing of the prototypes, and/or clinical validation of the product. Meanwhile, the other two companies had the technological capacity and expertise for developing the required technologies, but they did not have a working prototype; therefore, the role of PATH involved supporting the design and development of the new technology, as well as the required bench testing and validations. The financial support required was variable; in some cases PATH provided technical support for developing a “proof of concept” prototype, which later extended to financial support from PATH or other organizations. In other cases, the complexity of the initial work required financial support to start the development of that “proof of concept.” In conclusion, public-private partnerships are very effective for the development of new, affordable, and suitable technologies for screening and treatment of cervical precancer in emerging economies. AUTHORS' DISCLOSURES OF POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST: Francesca Holme Travel, Accommodations, Expenses: Qiagen Rose Slavkovsky No relationship to disclose Jose Jeronimo No relationship to disclose