Pragmatech: Bringing Dignity and Access to Cervical Cancer Screening in India

In 2019, while pursuing her PhD, Sayantani Pramanik received devastating news: her long-time house help had passed away after a short illness. The cause—cervical cancer—was revealed only later, and quietly. This loss struck a deeply personal chord with Sayantani and her husband, Anirban Palit, who was then working at Roche Diagnostics, a leader in HPV testing.

This tragedy highlighted the silent and deadly nature of cervical cancer, a disease that claims one woman every eight minutes in India. It exposed a heartbreaking gap between available technology and its reach to women who need it most. That’s when Pragmatech was born—with a mission to bring dignified, private, and accessible screening solutions to every woman.

From Personal Pain to Purposeful Innovation

Founded in Vadodara in June 2020, Pragmatech is led by four co-founders: Anirban Palit, the Managing Director, brings over a decade of diagnostics expertise; Dr. Sayantani Pramanik, the Product Lead, is a biochemist with deep pharma R&D experience; Ms. Palna Patel, the Outreach Lead, is a lawyer and social worker focused on community engagement; and Dr. Bhagirath Modi, the Head of Medical Affairs, is a veteran gynecologist ensuring clinical rigor.

Their flagship product, CERVICHECK™, is a clinically validated, self-use screening kit that allows women to collect cervical samples at home—no speculum, no clinic, no stigma.

The Solution: Dignified, Accessible, Scalable

CERVICHECK™ addresses the major barriers to cervical screening:

• Privacy: Self-sampling eliminates the discomfort of clinical pelvic exams.
• Access: Kits can be delivered via health workers, NGOs, and online platforms.
• Affordability: Priced accessibly for both public and private sectors.
• Usability: Developed through design thinking, user feedback, and real-world testing.

The samples work with standard HPV PCR diagnostics and are processed through partner labs like CORE and Sterling Accuris, with pan-India pickup and reporting.

Backed by Science, Built for Impact

Pragmatech is India’s first startup to clinically validate and receive CDSCO approval for a cervical self-sampling device. More than 3,000 women across India—urban, tribal, and rural, have used CERVICHECK™, proving its effectiveness and acceptance.

They’re also developing a rapid, point-of-care screening tool with Tata Memorial Centre for PHC-level use, akin to a pregnancy test for cervical pre-cancer.

Market and Model

Pragmatech serves public health departments, NGOs, CSR programs, diagnostic labs, and direct consumers. Their hybrid B2B/B2C model includes:

• Bulk procurement for state and national programs.
• Direct-to-consumer kits via www.cervicheck.in.
• Service bundling with HPV testing and diagnostics.

The total addressable market includes over 300 million women in India and 1.5 billion globally across LMICs.

Growth, Recognition, and the Road Ahead

Since launch, Pragmatech has raised over ₹1.5 crore in seed funding and secured an additional ₹1.92 crore in grants. The company has established strategic partnerships with institutions like AIIMS, Cancer Institute Adyar, Private labs like CORE Diagnostics and NGOs such as Penn Nalam. It has been recognised with prestigious awards from BIRAC, the Pfizer INDovation Challenge, and the India MedTech Expo.

The startup also gained national visibility by being featured on Shark Tank India, where it secured investment from Namita Thapar. Looking ahead, Pragmatech plans to expand distribution across Gujarat, Odisha, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh; publish clinical data to drive national adoption through the NPCDCS program; launch its rapid point-of-care screening test; and enter export markets in low- and middle-income countries to secure WHO prequalification.