ACCESS

About

ACCESS (EWB UBC) works to lower cervical cancer burden in sub-Saharan Africa. We focus on two things: community education that is clear and culturally respectful, and better screening access through low-cost, user-friendly HPV self-testing. By combining engineering with local insight, we make prevention and early detection more reachable.

Leveraging UBC’s engineering expertise, we aim to develop a low-cost, user-friendly self-collection Human papillomavirus (HPV) test for women in sub-Saharan Africa. Our multifocal approach involves stakeholder collaboration, community workshops, and rigorous research to ensure that our solution addresses the sociocultural factors, resource limitations, and technological barriers prevalent in the region.

In addition to our mission of developing engineering solutions to combat cervical cancer, ACCESS Venture is committed to advancing education on cervical cancer within the communities we serve. We recognize that knowledge is a powerful tool in the fight against this disease, and we aim to empower individuals with information that can help them make informed decisions about their health.

Project

Timeline

ACCESS Venture – Education Team Overview (2025–2026)

Education Team Timeline (Sept 2025 – Apr 2026)

September — Team kickoff and topic planning
• Identify key stakeholders in Vancouver
• Outline pamphlet sections and decide resource format

October — Research and writing
• Identify stakeholders in Africa
• Draft individual sections and outreach messages

November — Feedback and refinement
• Conduct stakeholder interviews
• Review and improve pamphlet sections

December — Translation and design
• Complete English draft and share for feedback
• Explore translation tools and finalize layout

January — Recruitment and updates
• Welcome new members
• Incorporate feedback and prepare digital version

February — Outreach and testing
• Share multilingual pamphlets with partners
• Collect feedback and early impact data

March — Evaluation and expansion

• Assess engagement results
• Plan next campaign and funding opportunities

April — Reflection and future direction
• Discuss long-term goals and next steps for continued outreach
• Explore new partnerships and project ideas for summer 2026

Biochemical Team Timeline (September 2025 - April 2026)

September – Review

Understand the composition of urine
Research assays, and decide on an assay for miRNA detection

October – Selecting the Biomarker & Assay

The Biochemical sub-team researched varying biomarkers and varying assays to determine which would be the best for the detection of the HPV virus.

November – Final Selection

Decided on the E7 Biomarker
Decided on the Eliza Assay

December – Working on protocol

Get familiar with the dynamics of working within a lab

January – procuring the lab space & getting lab certifications

Procure a lab space
Preparing to work within the lab by getting certification so that members are eligible to work in lab spaces

February - testing

Conduct testing to determine whether the decide-on assays and biomarkers are suitable

March - testing

Conduct testing to determine whether the decided-on assays and biomarkers are suitable

April - confirmation testing

If results are undesirable, go back and decide on new biomarkers and/or new assays

Mechanical Team Timeline (September 2025 - April 2026)

September – Review

Understand the Theory on Microfluidics and Fluid Mechanics
Refresh knowledge on CAD Design
Refresh knowledge on MATLAB
Literature on Urine collection & microfluidics

October – Understand Prototype Manufacturing Process

Generated a list of stakeholder questions
Collaborated with Biochem team to learn more about the assays and biomarkers

November – Design & Fabrication

C-sketching
CAD Designing

December - continuing urine collection

Finalise urine collection prototype
Start C sketch and CAD design for microfluidic chip

January - continuing urine collection

Ensure all uncertainties of the urine collection device are addressed

February - The micro fluidic chip

Start researching the dynamics of microfluidic devices

March - The micro fluidic chip

Start C-sketching possible micro fluidic devices

April - The microfluidic chip

CAD Design the decided-on micro fluidic device

Venture Lead

Laura Ing - 5th Year Biomedical Engineering

Venture Team Members

Robyn Birch Senior Design Advisor

Alliana Rempel Education Lead

Saylor Pickrell Education Team Member

Hailey Sam Education Team Member

Ahmed Rowa Communications Representative

Christina Moolman Communications Representative

Sumbul Iqbal Events Co-Lead

Nour Elbadan Events Co-Lead

Rizzel Flora Events Member

Joshua Largo Mechanical Design Team Lead

Valenie Cheung Mechanical Design Team Member

Calla Stanley Mechanical Design Team Member

Elyse Piskacek Mechanical Design Team Member

Chloe Nguyen Mechanical Design Team Member

Parignya Sanghvi Mechanical Design Team Member

Ideog Attafuah Mechanical Design Team Member

Ellie Smith Mechanical Design Team Member