Monthly cycle is viewed as an unthinkable to try and talk about in India, so envision the response to gathering ladies' utilized menstrual cushions.
Yet, that is precisely what wellbeing specialists did in towns in the West Indian province of Maharashtra - keeping in mind the end goal to analyze the likelihood of cervical tumor.
More than a fourth of the world's cervical growth patients are from India.
However there are many reasons why ladies don't go for cervical screening - an absence of satisfactory foundation and offices in provincial zones and troubling costs, combined with unease at experiencing the intrusive examination.
"Country ladies are timid, fear the test and think of it as superfluous," said analysts writing in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention.
Over 90% of Indian provincial ladies utilize custom made fabric as a menstrual cushion, rather than business clean items.
Specialists from the Tata Memorial Center and National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health in India found that by breaking down these utilized menstrual cushions, they could distinguish the nearness of human papilloma infection (HPV), which can cause cervical malignancy.
"It is a simple and helpful way," Dr Atul Budukh, lead specialist from the middle, told the BBC.
"The real barrier to expansive scale execution of the cervical malignancy screening program is the low cooperation by the ladies in danger."
Subsequently, specialists say that most cervical malignancy patients are just analyzed at a progressed metastatic stage or when going to doctor's facility for some other restorative registration.
Profound stop DNA
For the exploration, more than 500 ladies matured in the vicinity of 30 and 50 with no history of any tumor, who were physically and rationally fit and discharging routinely, gave their cushions to investigation amid the two-year examine period.
These ladies were made a request to store the menstrual fabric on the principal day of their periods in a basic ziplock pack and hand it to the neighborhood wellbeing laborer.
The gathered menstrual material was then put away at - 20C and sent to the indicative focus in a dry ice compartment for HPV screening.
Genomic DNA was then extricated from dried menstrual blood, enhanced and considered utilizing polymerase chain response - a procedure utilized as a part of atomic science.
Twenty-four ladies tried positive for HPV and were recognized for assist treatment, said Dr Bhuduk.
This incorporated a colposcopy - a basic strategy used to take a gander at the cervix, the lower some portion of the womb at the highest point of the vagina.
The methodology can affirm whether cells in the cervix are anomalous and require treatment.
The specialists likewise reported the ladies' socio-statistic and regenerative history, their washroom and can offices and the kind of menstrual gadget utilized.
Genital cleanliness
The examination found a critical requirement for escalated wellbeing instruction on genital cleanliness.
As indicated by the Census of India 2011, over 41% of the family units don't have washrooms and of those that do, 16% of the rooms did not have a rooftop.
Dr Budukh stated: "In light of the poor states of the lavatory or absence of appropriate latrine offices, ladies in rustic zones don't have the security to wash their privates."
Poor genital cleanliness has been observed to be a critical factor for the advancement of dysplasia and cervical growth, and the utilization of cushions produced using reused fabric expands that hazard, contemplates have appeared.
Gathering the menstrual fabric was a genuine test, the specialists stated, somewhat due to the myths and superstitions encompassing feminine cycle among the country populace in India.
For instance, bleeding ladies are by and large banished from entering the kitchen, going to sanctuaries and going to religious get-togethers.
Myths and superstition
This made it troublesome for wellbeing laborers to gather the cushions, particularly in the nights, since it is viewed as a terrible sign for discharging ladies to turn out after nightfall.
Concentrated wellbeing instruction programs on cervical growth and how to counteract it were sorted out for town pioneers, social specialists and relatives of the members.
They were additionally educated of the myths encompassing monthly cycle.
There were a few constraints to the examination - the moving of the specimens was exorbitant and specialists called attention to that advancement of a straightforward component of sending the cushions for testing via mail would be more productive than cooler stockpiling.
Just bleeding ladies can profit by this screening technique, they likewise noted.
Dr Budukh and his group say that with an enhanced framework for gathering and despatching menstrual cushions for testing and great wellbeing training, this could turn into a compelling cervical malignancy screening apparatus.