Comparison of high-risk HPV detection by the AmpFire® HPV Screening 16/18/HR technique (Atila Biosystems) and the hybrid capture 2 test (Qiagen)

BackgroundDetection of high-risk human papillomaviruses (hrHPV) is widely used at the first line of cervical cancer screening, requiring rigorous validation of the clinical performance of commercial kits designed for this indication.MethodsPerformance of the AmpFire HPV Screening 16/18/HR test (AF, Atila Biosystems) and the Hybrid Capture 2 test (HC2, Qiagen) for detecting hrHPV was cross-compared in 200 cervical samples in our institution.ResultsThe global percentage of agreement between the 2 techniques was 95.0% (95%CI 92-98%) with a Cohen's kappa coefficient of 0.85 (95%CI 0.75-0.94). Ten samples showed discordant results between the 2 techniques in both directions (5 HC2+/AF- and 5 HC2-/AF+). Among possible explanations for these discrepancies was the detection of HPV66 and HPV53 genotypes in two samples, since these genotypes are targeted by the Ampfire test but not by the HC2 test, as well as intrinsic differences in analytical performance to target specific genotypes.ConclusionsA high level of agreement was observed between the two techniques, which encourages further testing in order to definitively validate the use of the Ampfire kit for primary cervical cancer screening.