FutureFemHealth

🔥 Here’s your catch-up on everything women’s health innovation and FemTech from the last week.⁣ ⁣ All of these stories are free to read in our weekly newsletter: www.futurefemhealth.com ⁣ 📌 FemTech start-ups including Daré Bioscience, Inc. and Celmatix share in the $110m Sprint for Women's Health | Sabrina Johnson, Piraye Beim ⁣ 📌 Germany's Vara snaps $8.9m to expand AI breast cancer screening tech to India | Jonas Muff Stefan Bunk ⁣ 📌Bayer partners with Impli for real-time implantable hormone monitoring for IVF and beyond | Anna Luisa Schaffgotsch 📌 Wisp launches weight care vertical to support women with hormonal imbalances | Monica Cepak, MBA 📌 Maven Clinic is swapping out its finance chief as the women’s health unicorn looks ahead to an IPO ⁣ 📌 Lindus Health introduces its ‘all-in-one women’s health CRO’ for clinical trials in women’s health space | Emma Ogburn (PhD) ⁣ 📌 Neuroscientist Carina Heller finds her brain shrinks while taking birth control ⁣ 📌 Fertility rate in England and Wales drops to new low ⁣ 📌 'The million-dollar question of this election’: Women’s health startups are confronting a shifting legal landscape in the US 📌 'How did the word ‘digital’ only get mentioned once in Australia's menopause Senate inquiry recommendations? | Georgie Drury ⁣ And even more! Read all the stories in our free newsletter. 🥳 ⁣

FemTech start-ups share in $110m Sprint for Women's Health Ovarian health biotech Celmatix and HPV-treatment innovator Daré Bioscience, Inc. will share in $110m as part of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) 'Sprint for Women's Health.' A total of 23 organisations from around the world will receive a slice of $110m in funding to address critical unmet challenges in women’s health, champion transformative innovations and tackle health conditions that uniquely or disproportionately affect women. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said: “In order to improve women’s health, we need to pursue and invest in research focused on advancements for women. This is especially true where we know far too little about how to prevent and treat a range of conditions that affect women across their lifespan.” “The Biden-Harris Administration continues to change how health research is pursued and utilized. The groups being recognized today have picked up that challenge and are doing work that is groundbreaking and lifesaving.” Sabrina Johnson Piraye Beim ➡ Full story including all the winners: https://lnkd.in/eC-xYGVk

"For women experiencing conditions like PCOS, perimenopause, and menopause, GLP-1s open doors to improved health outcomes and a better quality of life. By integrating these therapies into Wisp offerings, we are delivering personalized care at scale and positioning ourselves at the leading edge of women's healthcare innovation." Hamed Shahbazi, founder and CEO of WELL Health Technologies Corp. (TSX: WELL) Women’s health company Wisp has announced it is moving into weight care with the launch of four weight care solutions - including GLP-1 medications - to support women struggling with hormonal conditions such as perimenopause, menopause, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), and endometriosis. Full story: https://lnkd.in/dgzgaiFk cc. Monica Cepak, MBA

🔥 Here’s your catch-up on everything women’s health innovation and FemTech from the last week.⁣ ⁣ All of these stories are free to read in our weekly newsletter: www.futurefemhealth.com ⁣ 📌 Teal Health awarded $1.68m grant for its at-home cervical cancer screening | Kara Egan ⁣ 📌 Smart ring maker ŌURA releases its first-ever Perimenopause Report - using deidentified data from 100,000 Oura users | Dorothy Kilroy (she/her) ⁣ 📌 Mira Fertility launches ‘Menopause Transitions Kit’ to help women spot early signs | Sylvia Kang ⁣ 📌 Berry Fertility partners with Pinnacle Fertility, Inc. to expand reach across 40 US clinics. | Irene Alvarado Beth Zoneraich ⁣ 📌 hims & hers appoints first women’s health Chief Medical Officer for Hers | Jessica Shepherd, MD, MBA, FACOG ⁣ 📌 White women most likely to get HRT prescriptions in England, study finds. ⁣ 📌 HRT prescriptions in England up 22% in a year. 📌 Early puberty may contribute to increase in breast cancer among younger women. ⁣ 📌 Men and women process pain differently, new study finds. 📌 World Health Organization urges expansion of lifesaving midwifery care for women and babies. 📌 Mariella Frostrup appointed as government menopause employment ambassador. And even more! Subscribe for free to get news like this into your inbox next week 🥳 ⁣

Teal Health, the woman-led company on a mission to get all women and people with a cervix in the US screened for cervical cancer has been awarded a $1.68m grant to progress its work. The prestigious Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Direct to Phase II Grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)- was awarded to support the development and clinical validation of Teal Health's Teal Wand. Kara Egan, CEO and co-founder of Teal Health, said: "We're honoured that the NIH recognises the importance of our at-home screening technology in increasing access to preventive care and cancer screenings for women in the US.” "This funding brings us closer to our goal of providing women greater autonomy over their health while advancing the fight to eradicate cervical cancer." Full story: https://lnkd.in/dhcz9B42

“While many existing solutions only address the problem when it already exists, Mira Hormone Monitor: Menopause Transitions Kit provides an opportunity to enter and go through the whole menopause journey without guessing, address symptoms earlier, and better understand the changes that are such a normal part of ageing”. Sylvia Kang, CEO of Mira. Mira's new menopause transitions kit monitors four key hormones with an at-home, AI-based hormone tracking. Full story: https://lnkd.in/dkFPxvMp

Millennials are facing a unique challenge when it comes to menopause. Unlike previous generations, they now have unprecedented access to information that can be overwhelming and anxiety-inducing. To mark World Menopause Day, we explore how the narrative around menopause needs to shift to a more balanced approach, while still not belittling what some women go through. Thank you to Marleen ten Damme of menopause platform Vi, Dr Naomi Potter of Menopause Care Limited clinics, and Katie Taylor of The Latte Lounge (The online platform for midlife women) for your contributions and insights to this article. https://lnkd.in/eGQ7iGFD

“The fertility industry is undergoing a massive transformation, with fertility clinics scaling up to meet patient demand, and a new generation of patients that expect a more modern set of personalised tools and access to quality education as they undergo what is a difficult, costly, and psychologically taxing procedure — I know because I went through it myself." Irene Alvarado CEO Berry Fertility. Berry Fertility, a fertility management app for IVF, IUI, embryo transfer, and egg freezing, has secured its first partnership with a large network of fertility clinics, Pinnacle Fertility, Inc. in the US. cc. Beth Zoneraich https://lnkd.in/eSeCwHPd

🔥 Here’s your catch-up on everything women’s health innovation and FemTech from the last week.⁣ ⁣ All of these stories are free to read in our weekly newsletter www.futurefemhealth.com ⁣ 📌 Why the menopause narrative needs to shift from anxiety to empowerment - we dive into what's changing with Dr Naomi Potter and Marleen ten Damme (Vi Health) ⁣ 📌 New women's health VC firm Foreground Capital launches | Alice Zheng Stasia Obremskey Elizabeth Bailey ⁣ 📌 ShiraTronics, Inc. secures $66m in funding for implantable migraine device | Norwest Venture Partners Rob Binney 📌 LEVY Health secures $4.5m seed funding to speed up the fertility journey | Caroline Mitterdorfer Silvia Hecher Priv.-Doz. Dr. med. Theresa Vilsmaier 📌 Hologic, Inc. to buy Gynesonics, Inc. for $350m to acquire fibroid system ⁣ 📌 University of Oxford gets to work on world's first ovarian cancer prevention vaccine ⁣ 📌 Meet the 10 most active VC investors in FemTech startups ⁣ 📌 Melinda Gates’ launches $250m in grants for women’s health ⁣ 📌 Stool test could provide a simpler way to diagnose endometriosis ⁣ And even more! 🥳 ⁣ _____________________________________ 📩 Want a free round-up of women's health innovation and FemTech news like this each week? Join 1,500+ others on the FutureFemHealth mailing list here: https://lnkd.in/dTrt-yYd  _____________________________________

Today, I’m announcing the shutdown of Zencape Health, closing out a four-year chapter. After 2 pivots, 1 launched app, dozens of experiments, and thousands of patient interactions, we’ve reached the end of our journey. Zencape Health was born from my own decade-long fight for the women’s healthcare experience I desperately needed. Our vision was to create the most inclusive, affirming, and comprehensive healthcare platform for people with chronic conditions. We set out to elevate the standard of care for women, trans and non-binary individuals, people of color, and communities that healthcare has historically overlooked. And in many ways, we did just that. Building a company is like trying to hit a bullseye at the top of a mountain. There are days when the climb brings you to a vista point, where you can look back and see just how far you’ve come (those days are sunshine in a bottle). And then there are days when the climb feels like it’s dragging you backward—like the time a well-known VC told me, "This would be a better deal if you had a male-bodied co-founder" (yes, unfortunately, a real story). Truthfully, I’m still sifting through the highs and lows, trying to make sense of it all. But today, I’m choosing to anchor myself in gratitude. 🚀 Gratitude for the chance to work on a mission that runs through my veins, and for the opportunity to take a big swing. 🧗🏽♀️ Gratitude for the extraordinary people—teammates, investors, and more—who bravely joined me in building something meaningful. ✨ And most of all, gratitude for the individuals who trusted us with their healthcare needs and believed, along with us, in equitable care for all. As I look back from the vista, I wrote a personal reflection on the highs, the lows, and all the twists in between. You can find it on Medium below 👇🏽 https://lnkd.in/ePMT7AYV