(Yicai) May 20 -- Phase Scientific, a Hong Kong-based pioneer in non-invasive human papillomavirus testing kits, has raised USD34 million in Series A financing, the largest such funding round in Asia’s diagnostic technology sector since 2019.

The round was led by a private equity fund under Value Partners Group, one of Asia’s largest asset management firms, the biotech company specializing in cancer and infectious disease detection announced today.

Phase will use the proceeds to accelerate research and development in early disease screening technologies and scale up commercialization across cancer diagnostics, women’s health, and infectious disease solutions.

Founded in 2015, Phase has already launched more than 30 diagnostic products, delivering over 100 million test kits to 30 countries and conducting more than eight million medical tests globally.

A key focus of the company is advancing clinical trials for the world’s first urine-based HPV detection test, which allows for non-invasive, at-home testing. Uniquely, it also enables HPV screening in men, Chairman and Chief Executive Ricky Chiu told Yicai. HPV is associated with cervical and anal cancers, among other malignancies and skin disorders.

In a recent clinical study conducted with the Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, the urine-based test demonstrated 93.4 percent sensitivity in detecting CIN2+ -- moderate to severe cervical cell abnormalities that may precede cancer. It also achieved 97 percent consistency with standard HPV screening methods, per the company.

Phase is conducting clinical trials simultaneously in the United States, mainland China, and Hong Kong, Chiu noted. The HPV urine test is expected to launch through the laboratory-developed test system, which allows the test to be produced and used within the same lab, and the regulatory approval process should take around one year, he added.

Editor: Emmi Laine