QIAGEN Launches careHPV™ Test in India to Expand Preventive Screening Against Cervical Cancer

MUMBAI, February 26, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

- The careHPV^TM Test is the First HPV Diagnostic Designed for Regions with Limited Healthcare Infrastructure, Complementing QIAGEN's Market-leading Digene HC2 HPV Test

- Commercial Launch of careHPV Test in India Enables High-quality Screening for Prevention of Cervical Cancer Among  Women in Low-resource Areas

- The careHPV Test Plays an Important Role in QIAGEN's Corporate Social Responsibility Effort Around the World, Especially in Low-resource Areas

QIAGEN N.V. today announced the commercial launch in India of its careHPV^TM Test, the only molecular diagnostic for high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) designed to screen women in settings with limited healthcare infrastructure, such as areas lacking electricity, water or laboratories. HPV is the primary cause of cervical cancer in women, so screening for the viral infection is a powerful strategy for prevention and early treatment of the deadly cancer. The careHPV Test was launched commercially in China in 2013 and has been used in several other countries, including as part of QIAGEN's corporate social responsibility effort, QIAGENcares.

The careHPV Test for low-resource settings is highly complementary with QIAGEN's digene HC2 HPV Test, the world's most validated and sensitive diagnostic test for detection of high-risk HPV. The digene HC2 HPV Test is recognized as the "gold standard" in HPV screening and is widely used in developed countries and in large cities in emerging markets.

About 72,000 women in India die of cervical cancer each year, more than one-fourth of the world's 270,000 annual deaths. In India, cervical cancer accounts for about 20% of all cancer-related deaths in women and is the number one cause of death in middle-aged Indian women.

"The launch of careHPV in India will help in efforts to reduce the high burden of cervical cancer for women in India," said Dr. Victor Shi, President of QIAGEN Asia Pacific. "With the digene HC2 HPV Test serving areas that have modern healthcare infrastructure and the careHPV Test serving low-resource areas, QIAGEN is expanding our role as the global leader in preventive screening for cervical cancer and is continuing to contribute to women's health around the world."

Dr. Partha Basu, Head of the Department of Gynecological Oncology and Officer in Charge, Division of Preventive Oncology, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, noted the importance of the two-tiered approach to screening. "Based on the findings of the screening project that we have been doing for four years in Kolkata and surrounding areas, there is a need for a cost-effective and easy-to-use test which can best meet the requirements of low-resource settings. Availability of the careHPV Test is an important step forward for the prevention of cervical cancer in India," he said.

QIAGEN's robust, portable and easy-to-use careHPV Test combines the power of advanced molecular technologies with innovative design and features. For example, the system has color-coded, easy-to-understand menus and self-contained reagents. The test tolerates temperature variations that occur in rural clinics lacking refrigeration for sample storage due to limited electricity or water, and can provide results much faster. The careHPV Test was developed with support from PATH, an international nonprofit organization, and is manufactured by QIAGEN in Shenzhen, China.

The careHPV Test already plays an important role in QIAGENcares, QIAGEN's collaborations with NGOs and governments in which it helps expand access to high-quality cervical cancer screening in resource-poor regions. For example, tests for cervical cancer have been conducted on women in El Salvador using the careHPV Tests since 2012. The test will also be used in other countries, including Vanuatu.

Also as part of QIAGENcares, QIAGEN and the Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute (CNCI) started a five-year-program in 2010 to provide cervical cancer screening with the digene HC2 HPV Test to 50,000 women in rural West Bengal. Screening is facilitated through mobile field clinics. This project has screened more than 36,000 women to date and has detected 216 cases of High Grade Squamous Intra-epithelial Lesions (HSIL) and 52 cases of cervical cancers. Most of the cervical cancers were at early treatable stages, and more than 90% of these patients have been treated at CNCI. In addition, many doctors and community-based healthcare workers have been trained in HPV screening. This project is the first HPV-based screening project in India, demonstrating program aspects and successful implementation with clear deliverables. 

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women worldwide, and research has shown that 80% of new cases and deaths occur in developing countries, where awareness of the disease and access to preventive tests and medical treatment is low. In many low-resource areas, cervical cancer has eclipsed breast cancer as the primary cancer killer of women.

To learn more about QIAGENcares please visit:

http://www.qiagen.com/about-us/who-we-are/sustainability/qiagencares/.

About QIAGEN

QIAGEN N.V., a Netherlands holding company, is the leading global provider of sample and assay technologies that are used to transform biological materials into valuable molecular information. Sample technologies are used to isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from biological samples such as blood or tissue. Assay technologies are then used to make these isolated biomolecules visible and ready for interpretation. QIAGEN markets more than 500 products around the world, selling both consumable kits and automation systems to customers through four customer classes: Molecular Diagnostics (human healthcare), Applied Testing (forensics, veterinary testing and food safety), Pharma (pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies) and Academia (life sciences research). As of December 31, 2013, QIAGEN employed approximately 4,000 people in more than 35 locations worldwide. Further information can be found at www.QIAGEN.com/.

Certain of the statements contained in this news release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. To the extent that any of the statements contained herein relating to QIAGEN's products, markets, strategy or operating results, including without limitation its expected operating results, are forward-looking, such statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that involve a number of uncertainties and risks. Such uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with management of growth and international operations (including the effects of currency fluctuations, regulatory processes and dependence on logistics), variability of operating results and allocations between customer classes, the commercial development of markets for our products in applied testing, personalized healthcare, clinical research, proteomics, women's health/HPV testing and nucleic acid-based molecular diagnostics; changing relationships with customers, suppliers and strategic partners; competition; rapid or unexpected changes in technologies; fluctuations in demand for QIAGEN's products (including fluctuations due to general economic conditions, the level and timing of customers' funding, budgets and other factors); our ability to obtain regulatory approval of our products; difficulties in successfully adapting QIAGEN's products to integrated solutions and producing such products; the ability of QIAGEN to identify and develop new products and to differentiate and protect our products from competitors' products; market acceptance of QIAGEN's new products, the consummation of acquisitions, and the integration of acquired technologies and businesses. For further information, please refer to the discussions in reports that QIAGEN has filed with, or furnished to, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Primary Media Contact: Firdos Arjani, [email protected], 91-9920-063777

Secondary Media Contact: Angelo Lu, [email protected], 86-2138-653824