A New Women’s Health R&D Accelerator in Heidelberg
XFem Labs is the new Women’s Health R&D Accelerator in Heidelberg. The purpose of this initiative, which is supported by the Gates Foundation, is to establish a world-class women’s health innovation hub that advances early-stage research into scalable solutions for women in need around the world, including low- and middle-income countries.
Why XFem Labs?
“Our joint goal with the Gates Foundation is to create a significant impact on the lives and health of women world-wide. Together with an international network of top experts and key opinion leaders, we will jointly build and mentor new outstanding research teams who will strive to solve some of the most pressing challenges in women’s health.
Dr. Christian Tidona, CEO of BioMed X.
Our first XFem Labs project
The first project at the new XFem Labs accelerator in Heidelberg is entitled “New Strategies for Female-Controlled Non-Hormonal Contraception”. Despite the availability of various contraceptive methods, 257 million women worldwide still face significant barriers to access.
Current hormonal contraceptives are often associated with side effects, such as changes in bleeding patterns, resulting in high discontinuation rates. Non-hormonal, female-controlled alternatives remain limited and often challenging, hence there is an urgent need for new options.
🔬 We invite early-career researchers and interdisciplinary teams to submit their ideas for novel, safe, and effective non-hormonal contraceptive strategies.