Jennifer Schneiders, PhD, Division President, Diagnostic Solutions, Hologic discusses women’s health diagnostics with MLO editor in chief Christina Wichmann
Jennifer Schneiders, PhD, was promoted to Division President, Diagnostic Solutions in April 2023. Prior to that, she served as Vice President, US Sales and Commercial Excellence for the company's Diagnostic Solutions division. Dr. Schneiders joined Hologic in March 2008 upon its acquisition of Third Wave Technologies and has held various roles of increasing responsibility, including Vice President, Diagnostic Laboratory Solutions from September 2020 to November 2022 and Senior Director of Clinical Solutions prior to that. She has been a key player in driving Hologic's market-leading position in women's health diagnostics. Dr. Schneiders began her career with Third Wave in 1998, holding various roles until its acquisition by Hologic. Dr. Schneiders holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Trinity College and a PhD in biochemistry from Boston College.
MLO: How does personalized medicine impact women's health?
Jennifer Schneiders, PhD: Personalized medicine is a new but essential tool when it comes to women's health. I think oftentimes healthcare takes a one-size-fits-all approach, but it's important to understand how we can customize certain testing or treatment recommendations to either target a particular population within a disease category or a particular disease category itself that is multifaceted. One example of where we have started to engage in personalized medicine and what excites me about our business currently is in the Breast Cancer Index test — a test that actually predicts the likelihood of a woman benefiting from extended endocrine therapy.
Women who have been diagnosed with early-stage hormone receptor positive breast cancer and are approaching the 5-year mark can now receive individualized long-term treatment recommendations. The tissue sample that was used for the diagnosis can be used to evaluate the genetic makeup of the material and look at a particular biomarker that will help the woman and her physician decide whether or not she should go beyond the recommended five years of endocrine therapy. Many women suffer from pretty massive life-changing side effects from those types of drugs, so this gives a woman a yes or no answer as to whether or not staying on that drug will benefit her or not in terms of the recurrence of that cancer.
MLO: Why is it essential for labs to have tools to provide diagnostic clarity for women's health?
Jennifer Schneiders, PhD: When we think about some of the more traditional areas within women's health, STIs as an example, the overlapping signs and symptoms or sometimes the lack of signs and symptoms can be quite confusing and hard to treat without the proper diagnostic tools. And so, we've seen within the laboratory industry that there are panels now available that will look at multiple STIs, like chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomonas and now even newer infections like Mycoplasma genitalium (M. gen).
And so, what the laboratory can do now with these tools available to them is look at all of these different infections together collectively from a single vaginal swab and then determine what is causing the particular signs and symptoms that the woman is experiencing. Similarly, within the screening population, chlamydia and gonorrhea are recommended by the CDC for yearly screening for women between the ages of 15 and 24 because 70% of these infections show no signs or symptoms. So, the asymptomatic and the symptomatic populations are provided diagnostic tools that can give physicians the specificity around diagnosis and treatment.
Another example is for respiratory illnesses. Multiple respiratory infections can cause similar signs and symptoms. If the infection is not being diagnosed and treated effectively, we can inadvertently negatively impact the patient or the circumstance.
We have a respiratory panel test available that looks at four respiratory infections: COVID-19, influenza A and B, and RSV all together collectively, so that the patient provides one sample for one test. There are four results, which will then specifically identify how that patient should be treated. More diagnostic panel testing associated with these types of illnesses will help differentiate and more accurately diagnose and treat patients, which is ultimately the goal for everyone.
MLO: How can labs play a role in advancing women's health?
Jennifer Schneiders, PhD: I have participated on a couple different women's health panels lately that are looking at women's health issues in general. At Hologic, we focus primarily on the more traditional gynecological women's health issues, whether it be cervical cancer screening, STIs, breast cancer screening, etc. But when we think about women's health, it's much broader than that. Over the last three years at Hologic, we have invested in a survey in partnership with Gallup called the Global Women's Health Index, where we've surveyed over 147,000 women globally across more than 40 countries. The Women's Health Index looks at things more broadly than just the traditional women's health issues. It looks at quality of life, preventive care, and other areas in which we want to understand better how women are living or need to be living healthier lives.
This survey has allowed us to create awareness and influence some areas where we need to do better collectively. One example is investment in technology. Our Genius Digital Diagnostics System can provide additional access to women and faster turnaround in results in the cervical cancer screening space. Cytology has long been the foundational tool to screen for cervical cancer. This recent innovation utilizes AI and takes the foundational tool of cytology and creates a digital platform so that it can be utilized more remotely by pathologists and cytotechnologists, which also helps with workforce shortage issues. Consequently, this digital platform promotes access for women and is considerate of the workforce.
MLO: Could you discuss the statistics around vaginitis and how you feel diagnosis can be improved for this inflammatory disorder?
Jennifer Schneiders, PhD: Vaginitis is one of the main reasons women go to their OB/GYN, which was actually news to me as we were developing the test. It’s often caused by one of three different infections — bacterial vaginosis, Candida vaginitis (commonly referred to as a yeast infection), or trichomonas — either individually or in combination. Additionally, the signs and symptoms overlap with the same signs and symptoms associated with chlamydia and gonorrhea.
Most women try to treat themselves with an over-the-counter treatment before they go to the physician because it can be embarrassing to talk about it. But it's very difficult for women to treat themselves without diagnosing exactly what is causing those signs and symptoms. There are tools available to diagnose vaginitis, but more recently there have been NAATs (Nucleic Acid Amplification Tests) developed. This is the test that we currently offer that can accurately tell the physician whether or not the woman has bacterial vaginosis, Candida vaginitis, trichomonas, or a combination of the three, along with other STIs. Then the physician can treat appropriately, because again, there are different antibiotics that would be recommended for treatment depending on what she has.
I think the point is, knowing the accurate diagnosis leads to the accurate treatment.
But in addition to that, it is incumbent upon us as Hologic – and I think just the broader healthcare community – to educate women on vaginitis. It's something that's been around forever, so it's nothing new. Providing visibility and education to vaginitis in general can make women feel empowered to actually go to the physician and talk about it.
