Red Drop

Simple, non-invasive kit for analysing menstrual blood at home and improving health monitoring

In production

Status

10.01.2024

Entry date
Problem to solve

What we discovered : - period blood is more than just blood, it contains endometrial tissues, bacteria shedding from the lining of your uterus, cervical mucus, much more. Making it a valuable, yet underutilized resource for women’s health. - women have been routinely left out of research and analysis leading to later diagnosis and inaccurate drug prescription, - 1.9 billion women menstruate and 85% of them would like to know more about their menstrual health, - there is a white space in the Femtech landscape for Menstrual Health diagnostics and tools. And according to a recent survey 57% of women would prefer self-sampling method (vs. clinician collection) for gynecological screening, - access to care can be a challenge: remote location, can't take time off, Dr appointment leadtime.

Proposed solution

We will provide self-collection kit to use at-home. Our kit contains a sampling device, IFU and a prepaid return envelope. The collection method (called 4S) is very easy : Sample, Scan, Seal, Send. Within 48/72hrs, you get a digital dashboard with your results in our App or Website. Later on, we will also integrate online care with access to virtual doctor services and chatbot trained to answer basic questions depending on the analysis results.

Request to H4

- diagnostic : get an external view on the relevance of the project - coaching : provide guidance on the project and identify critical steps to perform for a successful launch, - mentoring : share knowledge, skills and experience in the field of health start-up - networking : find partners and resources (human and financial), enable connections with end-consumer, professionals, experts in the field (e.g. biology) and provide access to infrastructures, - launch : provide support to enable & validate the launch of the MVP

What this project changes in healthcare: the problem to solve

• Menstrual blood, rich in biological information, remains under-exploited
• Women are frequently excluded from clinical studies, leading to late diagnoses and inappropriate prescriptions
• 1.9 billion women menstruate worldwide
• 85% want to better understand their menstrual health
• Lack of suitable solutions for early and accessible monitoring

The envisaged solution

• Simple, non-invasive home sampling kit for analysing menstrual blood
• Intuitive process: collect, scan, seal, send
• Results available in 48 to 72 hours via app or website
• Online medical follow-up with teleconsultations and dedicated chatbot
• Objective: to democratise early diagnosis, improve access to care and break down taboos surrounding periods

Hands-on support from H4

• Bibliographic research
• Strategic advice
• Funding research
• Support for submitting research projects with HES-SO La Source

What impact on the next steps of the project?

• Strengthening scientific credibility
• Assessing societal impact
• Improving value proposition

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