Wessex Women and Girls Network: Cervical Screening Awareness Webinar

Date: Monday 26 January 2026

Time: 12:30 - 1:30pm

Location: Online

Join us for a webinar during Cervical Screening Awareness Week, where leading voices will share insights, evidence, and solutions that drive lasting impact.

KEY LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

During this webinar, we aim to explore:

1. The importance of prevention through vaccination and screening for cervical cancer
2. The pioneering research and innovation of an at home testing kit for HPV using Daye diagnostic tampons.
3. An example of the impact on women whose symptoms are ignored and how Jess’s rule will change that.

AGENDA

12:30 Chair’s Welcome

Professor Vanora Hundley
Professor of Midwifery (previously Deputy Dean for Research and Professional Practice and Acting Executive Dean) in the Faculty Health, Environment and Medical Sciences at Bournemouth University. She is an internationally recognised midwifery researcher, having written over 180 peer-reviewed research articles on pregnancy, maternity care and midwifery.

12:35 Jess’s rule

Gemma Snell
Senior Programme Manager Innovation & Industry Needs Assessment Service at Health Innovation Wessex. Gemma’s focus is to support innovators and to foster more innovation in health and social care and improve health outcomes. She is part of the NHS Innovation Service assessing the needs of innovators wishing to enter or develop within the NHS.

12:40 Vaccination, screening and the impact on cervical cancer

David Constable-Phelps
Consultant gynaecologist sub-specialised in gynaecological cancer surgery. His PhD research focussed on the personalisation of surgical care according to tumour biomarkers and has a keen interest in early detection and fertility preservation. He has a busy practice in complex gynae cancer surgery and diagnostics clinics including colposcopy where he reviews women with abnormal smears and manages cervical cancer and pre-cancer.

12:55 The Daye Diagnostic Tampon Research and Innovation

Valentina Milanova
Founder, CEO and CPO of Daye, a gynaecological health research and development company. Their mission is to bridge the gender gap in product innovation. Valentina founded and scaled the company through its clinical validation, regulatory approvals, proprietary in-house manufacturing for their tampons in D2C and retail.

13:10 The VIOLET Study

Jemma Longley
Consultant Medical Oncologist at University Hospital Southampton, specialising in gynaecological cancers. Jemma is Chief Investigator of the VIOLET study, focused on early detection using vaginal fluid biomarkers, funded by the Eve Appeal.

13:15 Questions to panel