The FDA has approved the cobas HPV (human papillomavirus) test from Roche (Basel, Switzerland) as a first-line primary screening test for cervical cancer in women 25 and older. The approval follows the March 12 unanimous recommendation from the Microbiology Devices Panel of the FDA's Medical Devices Advisory Committee, making the cobas the only HPV test in the U.S. approved for first-line primary screening. Previously HPV tests had been used as a follow-up test for Pap (Papanicolaou) results and as an adjunct to Pap in women over 30.