Detection method for cervical HPVS

A method to assess the risk of cervical cancer in a female subject which method comprises detecting the presence of one or more hrHPV types, selected from the group consisting of HPV type 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, 67 and 68 in a cervical sample from said subject comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a sample suspected of harbouring said hrHPVs;
• (b) providing a plurality of forward and backward primers collectively substantially complementary to DNA of all of said hrHPVs wherein said plurality of primers comprises all the primers of SEQ ID NOS:1-15;
• (c) performing under conditions of reduced stringency a reaction to amplify DNA derived from the said sample using said plurality of primers;
• and
• (d) detecting DNA amplification products from one or more of said hrHPVs from said sample by hybridising the reaction products of the said DNA amplification reaction to a plurality of hrHPV probes which plurality contains probes specifically complementary to the nucleic acid sequence of the said DNA amplification product from each hrHPV type 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, 67 and 68 wherein said hrHPV probes comprise all the probes of SEQ ID NOS:16-30 or all of the probes of SEQ ID NOS:31-45;
• wherein said method is effective to detect each and every one of said types if each said type is present, wherein the presence of one or more said hrHPV types indicates said subject to be at risk for cervical cancer.