Summit 2022

Speakers

Anna Lee

Co-Founder + Head of Engineering, Lioness

Dr. Jill Goldstein

Founder & Executive Director, Innovation Center On Sex Differences in Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School

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Summit 2021

Speakers

Dr. Carole Clair

Associate Professor and Co-head of Research and Innovation Training Department, UniSanté

Alexandra Alvergne

CNRS Research Fellow (Institute for Evolutionary Sciences, Montpellier University)

Laura Symul

Postdoctoral Fellow Statistics, Stanford University

Summit 2022

Schedule
Day I
June 1, 2022
3:00 pm

Introductory Remarks

Welcome to the FemTechnology Summit + Overview of the day's topics
Oriana Kraft
1 June
Time:  3:00 pm - 3:15 pm
Location:  Welcome to the FemTechnology Summit + Overview of the day's topics
Speaker:  Oriana Kraft
3:15 pm

RoundTable: The Future of Fertility

The fertility journey is notoriously opaque and difficult to navigate. Medicine as a whole, however, is entering an era of personalization. In this roundtable we will explore in what ways personalized medicine holds the promise of revolutionize female fertility and gynecological diagnoses (31% of women will suffer from a reproductive health issue at some point in their lives). Featuring: Kindbody: a leading fertility and family-building benefits provider for employers offering comprehensive virtual and in-person care. Parla: a digital health platform putting data and knowledge in women’s hands, aiming to revolutionize and reframe the conversations around fertility and miscarriage. Hertility: At-home hormone and fertility testing that provides data-driven and advanced insights into reproductive health, fertility decline and the onset of menopause. With moderation focusing on how ovarian ageing can help us decipher long-term health by Staša Stanković.
Dr. Lynn Marie Westphal, MDStaša StankovićLina ChanDr Helen O’Neill
1 June
Time:  3:15 pm - 4:45 pm
Location:  The fertility journey is notoriously opaque and difficult to navigate. Medicine as a whole, however, is entering an era of personalization. In this roundtable we will explore in what ways personalized medicine holds the promise of revolutionize female fertility and gynecological diagnoses (31% of women will suffer from a reproductive health issue at some point in their lives). Featuring: Kindbody: a leading fertility and family-building benefits provider for employers offering comprehensive virtual and in-person care. Parla: a digital health platform putting data and knowledge in women’s hands, aiming to revolutionize and reframe the conversations around fertility and miscarriage. Hertility: At-home hormone and fertility testing that provides data-driven and advanced insights into reproductive health, fertility decline and the onset of menopause. With moderation focusing on how ovarian ageing can help us decipher long-term health by Staša Stanković.
Speaker:  Dr. Lynn Marie Westphal, MDStaša StankovićLina ChanDr Helen O’Neill
4:45 pm

Speed-Dating/ Mingling with other FemTech attendees

Lina Chan
1 June
Time:  4:45 pm - 5:15 pm
Location: 
Speaker:  Lina Chan
5:15 pm

The Economic Case For Investing In Women's Health Research

Investing 300 million in women's health research across 3 diseases, returns 13 billion to the US economy. Investing 26 million in women's health adds back nearly 40 000 years of full-time employment for both women and men. "Breakthroughs in science are going to happen by studying the populations that we haven’t studied. Shockingly that means studying the majority group: women. Modern medicine is a house on stilts. There are a few foundational pieces that we’re right on but beyond that we don’t know. And the problem is not that medicine is a house on stilts but that it’s a house on stilts pretending it’s not a house on stilts. Which means we never do the hard work of evaluating what we actually know objectively and what we don’t. Medicine still routinely treats females as smaller males - treating the organs in a women’s body as if they’re just plug and play." Listen to the Keynote to learn why - for the sake of advancing medicine - this needs to change. Today.
Chloe E. Bird
1 June
Time:  5:15 pm - 5:30 pm
Location:  Investing 300 million in women's health research across 3 diseases, returns 13 billion to the US economy. Investing 26 million in women's health adds back nearly 40 000 years of full-time employment for both women and men. "Breakthroughs in science are going to happen by studying the populations that we haven’t studied. Shockingly that means studying the majority group: women. Modern medicine is a house on stilts. There are a few foundational pieces that we’re right on but beyond that we don’t know. And the problem is not that medicine is a house on stilts but that it’s a house on stilts pretending it’s not a house on stilts. Which means we never do the hard work of evaluating what we actually know objectively and what we don’t. Medicine still routinely treats females as smaller males - treating the organs in a women’s body as if they’re just plug and play." Listen to the Keynote to learn why - for the sake of advancing medicine - this needs to change. Today.
Speaker:  Chloe E. Bird
5:30 pm

RoundTable: The Gender Data Gap

The Gender Data Gap persists at every echelon of healthcare from trials to treatment. Some examples? 70% of the people affected by chronic pain conditions are women – but 80% of research into pain is conducted on male humans or rodents. Despite being the leading cause of mortality in women, diagnosis of heart disease and models of clinical care draw heavily on previous research conducted only with men. The vaginal microbiome is another example. It is associated with the risk for STIs, Pelvic inflammatory disease, Fertility issues or failed IVF cycles, Pregnancy complications such as miscarriage, preterm birth, neonatal problems, and preeclampsia and much more. And yet, though lots of resources have been invested in understanding other human microbiomes like gut or skin microbiomes, when it comes to the vagina, the microbiome has been overlooked.
Priyanka JainAnna LeeDr. Yana AznavourEric Dy
1 June
Time:  5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Location:  The Gender Data Gap persists at every echelon of healthcare from trials to treatment. Some examples? 70% of the people affected by chronic pain conditions are women – but 80% of research into pain is conducted on male humans or rodents. Despite being the leading cause of mortality in women, diagnosis of heart disease and models of clinical care draw heavily on previous research conducted only with men. The vaginal microbiome is another example. It is associated with the risk for STIs, Pelvic inflammatory disease, Fertility issues or failed IVF cycles, Pregnancy complications such as miscarriage, preterm birth, neonatal problems, and preeclampsia and much more. And yet, though lots of resources have been invested in understanding other human microbiomes like gut or skin microbiomes, when it comes to the vagina, the microbiome has been overlooked.
Speaker:  Priyanka JainAnna LeeDr. Yana AznavourEric Dy
6:30 pm

Keynote: How Male-Centric Medicine Endangers Women’s Health

Women’s bodies are different from men’s bodies on a cellular level - yet the same treatments are usually prescribed for both sexes, even though women metabolise drugs differently so certain drugs remain in the system for longer or drop to dangerously low levels at certain points of the menstrual cycle. The impact of medication on women's QT (the resting time between heartbeats) is another example of differences between men and women. A woman’s QT is longer than a man’s and many prescription drugs –antidepressants, antihistamines, painkillers, antibiotics – cause incremental QT increases as a side-effect. For women taking multiple medications simultaneously (statistically women are more likely to be on multiple medications at the time), the risk of these combined increases can range from simple arrhythmia to sudden cardiac death.
Dr. Alyson J McGregor, MD
1 June
Time:  6:30 pm - 6:45 pm
Location:  Women’s bodies are different from men’s bodies on a cellular level - yet the same treatments are usually prescribed for both sexes, even though women metabolise drugs differently so certain drugs remain in the system for longer or drop to dangerously low levels at certain points of the menstrual cycle. The impact of medication on women's QT (the resting time between heartbeats) is another example of differences between men and women. A woman’s QT is longer than a man’s and many prescription drugs –antidepressants, antihistamines, painkillers, antibiotics – cause incremental QT increases as a side-effect. For women taking multiple medications simultaneously (statistically women are more likely to be on multiple medications at the time), the risk of these combined increases can range from simple arrhythmia to sudden cardiac death.
Speaker:  Dr. Alyson J McGregor, MD
6:45 pm

Closing Remarks Day 2 FemTechnology Summit

Oriana Kraft
1 June
Time:  6:45 pm - 7:00 pm
Location: 
Speaker:  Oriana Kraft
7:00 pm

Speed-Dating/ Mingling With Other Attendees

Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned + what other innovations you think are needed.
1 June
Time:  7:00 pm - 7:45 pm
Location:  Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned + what other innovations you think are needed.
Day II
June 2, 2022
3:30 pm

Introductory Remarks

Welcome to the FemTechnology Summit + Overview of the day's topics
Oriana Kraft
2 June
Time:  3:30 pm - 3:45 pm
Location:  Welcome to the FemTechnology Summit + Overview of the day's topics
Speaker:  Oriana Kraft
3:40 pm

Keynote: Impact of Sex on Risk & Therapeutics for Chronic Disease

The co-occurrence of disorders of the heart and brain are the leading causes of disability worldwide, and women are at twice the risk for these comorbidities. Understanding the shared causes, beginning in fetal development, provides unique opportunity for development of novel sex-dependent diagnostics and therapies at the neural-cardiac interface. The future of precision medicine lies in using a sex differences lens across the lifespan for prediction, treatment, and prevention of chronic disease.
Dr. Jill Goldstein
2 June
Time:  3:40 pm - 4:00 pm
Location:  The co-occurrence of disorders of the heart and brain are the leading causes of disability worldwide, and women are at twice the risk for these comorbidities. Understanding the shared causes, beginning in fetal development, provides unique opportunity for development of novel sex-dependent diagnostics and therapies at the neural-cardiac interface. The future of precision medicine lies in using a sex differences lens across the lifespan for prediction, treatment, and prevention of chronic disease.
Speaker:  Dr. Jill Goldstein
4:00 pm

The Link between Gender and Effective Therapy in Medicine

There are sex differences in every single cell in the human body. This Roundtable will explore how those differences influence the way diseases manifest between the genders and how it should influence the way we can diagnose and deliver treatment effectively. Emphasis will be placed on the differences in pain, the immune system and cardiovascular system between men and women and the implications that has.
Valentina MilanovaLeon A. BostonMette Dyhrberg
2 June
Time:  4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Location:  There are sex differences in every single cell in the human body. This Roundtable will explore how those differences influence the way diseases manifest between the genders and how it should influence the way we can diagnose and deliver treatment effectively. Emphasis will be placed on the differences in pain, the immune system and cardiovascular system between men and women and the implications that has.
Speaker:  Valentina MilanovaLeon A. BostonMette Dyhrberg
5:00 pm

Virtual Mingling

Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned + what other innovations you think are needed in the field of FemTech. Virtual mingling is the perfect opportunity to meet attendees from around the globe.
2 June
Time:  5:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Location:  Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned + what other innovations you think are needed in the field of FemTech. Virtual mingling is the perfect opportunity to meet attendees from around the globe.
5:30 pm

The Future of Care

Women's Health is undergoing a transformation when it comes to how we deliver care. There are holistic care model, care advocates, personalized care plans. We are changing who we consider to be responsible for care, including the caregiving economy and all its burdens.
Dr. Neel Shah, MDHelene GuillaumeViola KarlDr. Sipra Laddha
2 June
Time:  5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Location:  Women's Health is undergoing a transformation when it comes to how we deliver care. There are holistic care model, care advocates, personalized care plans. We are changing who we consider to be responsible for care, including the caregiving economy and all its burdens.
Speaker:  Dr. Neel Shah, MDHelene GuillaumeViola KarlDr. Sipra Laddha
6:30 pm

Keynote: The Future of Care

How can we revolutionize care to make it more inclusive, allow women to access it better and incorporate sex and gender-based differences in clinical presentation, physical examination, laboratory results, treatment regimens and communication differences between men and women to assist clinicians in their conversations with patients.
Dr. Marjorie Jenkins, MD MEdHP FACP
2 June
Time:  6:30 pm - 6:45 pm
Location:  How can we revolutionize care to make it more inclusive, allow women to access it better and incorporate sex and gender-based differences in clinical presentation, physical examination, laboratory results, treatment regimens and communication differences between men and women to assist clinicians in their conversations with patients.
Speaker:  Dr. Marjorie Jenkins, MD MEdHP FACP
6:45 pm

Closing Remarks FemTechnology Summit

Oriana Kraft
2 June
Time:  6:45 pm - 7:00 pm
Location: 
Speaker:  Oriana Kraft
7:00 pm

Virtual Mingling

Connect with other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned and what other innovations you think are needed in the field of FemTech. Virtual mingling is the perfect opportunity to meet attendees from around the globe.
2 June
Time:  7:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Location:  Connect with other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned and what other innovations you think are needed in the field of FemTech. Virtual mingling is the perfect opportunity to meet attendees from around the globe.

2022 Summit Recap

We kicked things off with the ‘Future of Fertility’ moderated by
 Stasa Stankovic, PhD Genomic Medicine, University of Cambridge featuring:          
Dr. Helen O’Neill, CEO + Founder Hertility              
Lina Chan, CEO + Founder Parla          
Dr. Lynn Westphal, Chief Medical Officer Kindbody.

‘Future of Fertility’ recording

“In the UK you have to miscarry 3 times before you can go see a specialist.”

“25% of women are thinking about giving up work because of menopause symptoms.”

“It’s high-time to create a healthcare system which is also in the hands of women.”

“Advocacy is an important part of the overall mission.”

Next: We had a brilliant Keynote by Chloe E. Bird, Senior Sociologist RAND, on the ‘Economic Case for Investing in Women’s Health ’

Where we learnt that “there were many studies that were dismissed because they didn’t work in men, even though they did in fact work in women. So we need to go back and start reanalysing the data.”

Economic Case Recording

Followed on by a panel on the ‘Gender Data Health Gap’
moderated by Dr. Yana Aznavour, CEO + Founder of Endometrics featuring:
Anna Lee, Head of Engineering + Co-Founder Lioness
Priyanka Jain, CEO + Co-Founder Evvy
Eric Dy, CEO + Co-Founder Bloomlife.

Some things we learnt:
Lioness identified 3 types of orgasm patterns: Ocean wave, Avalanche and Volcano.
“The number of women experiencing pregnancy complications and birth complications increased 31.5% between 2014-2018.”
“Healthcare is the largest contributor to the US GDP and women are 50% of that. Logically, innovation in this field is a huge opportunity.”
“We need to stop normalising women’s pain.”

Data Gap Recording

This panel was followed by a perfect closing Keynote to Day 1 from Dr. Alyson McGregor, Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs and Development, Professor of Emergency Medicine, University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville, on ‘How Male-Centric Medicine Endangers Women’s Health’

Dr. McGregor reminded us that : “We have studied men in their 20s, 30s and 40s with stable testosterone because researchers wanted to find out what was ‘really going on’ and they thought the menstrual cycle would be too complicated to consider. And so we did find out what was really going on – in men that are 20, 30 and 40 and white. We haven’t really understood how important hormone changes impact our body.”

Male-Centric Medicine Recording

Day TWO of the FemTechnology Summit was kicked off by the illuminating Dr. Jill Goldstein, Founder & Executive Director, Innovation Center On Sex Differences in Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, on ‘Impact of Sex on Risk & Therapeutics for Chronic Disease’.

Where we learnt that “Depression and cardiovascular disease are independent risk factors for memory decline and Alzheimer’s Disease. We have no effective treatments for three of the major chronic diseases of our time. We have been tackling this through understanding shared causes of sex differences across disorders with origins in fetal development.”

Sex Specific Treatments

Next up:  an impromptu discussion between Dr. Lynae Brayboy, Chief Medical Officer of Clue, and Leon A. Boston, CEO of MobileODT. And we learnt that: “90 million women in the US live in a contraceptive desert” and as Leon reminded us, cervical cancer is preventable so “no woman in the world should be dying from cervical cancer.”

Valentina Milanova, Founder and CPO of Daye, was able to tell us a little about Daye and how tampons can provide localised relief to the cramps that affect 90% of women. Daye is also expanding to non-invasive vaginal screening using a tampon to increase uptake.

To learn more about the terrific Mette Dyhrberg, make sure you read this femtechnology article in which Mette reminds us of the ways in which our system is fundamentally broken for autoimmune patients.

“If you have an autoimmune disease, it gets taken apart. You go to the doctor and have brain fog, stomach pain, joint issues – and the doctor tells you: “That’s three different specialists. What’s your biggest problem right now?” At that point, we fail the patient. Joints are not a separate issue from the brain fog or from stomach pain. It’s all interrelated.”

We closed the Summit with a panel on the ‘Future of Care’
moderated by Oriana Kraft, Founder of FemTechnology Summit featuring:
Dr. Sipra Laddha, Co-Founder LunaJoy
Hélène Guillaume, Founder + CEO Wild.ai
Viola Karl, CEO MySummer
Dr. Neel Shah, Chief Medical Officer Maven Clinic.

Some important take-homes:
“Women are not men, but research doesn’t seem to know that.”
“75% of women who experience maternal mental health symptoms go untreated.”
“If you are able to help people manage chronic conditions better, they’re less likely to have premature deliveries.”
“Many women are put on hormonal birth control at a very young age without being properly checked first.”
“Healthcare has to be reimagined.”

Future of Care Recording

We closed the Summit with a Keynote by Dr. Marjorie Jenkins, Dean of UofSC School of Medicine Greenville, Chief Academic Officer for Prisma Health-Upstate, on the ‘Future of Care’.

She reminded us that “Women have increased mortality as a result of broken systems.” and called us to action to go out there and create a better system 💪

Voilà 🎉 that’s our #femtechnologysummit recap! Another huge thank you to our speakers for joining and for the ground-breaking work they’re doing to improve women’s health 👏

We couldn’t have hosted the Summit without our wonderful sponsors: WomenAtTheTable and Bio Innovation Institute❤️
And Roche Digital Innovation Lab who were the most terrific hosts 😍

For those of you who’d like to be the first to know when tickets are released for the next Summit – here’s the

Early Sign Up Button

 

Summit 2021

Schedule
Day 1
Day 2
Day 1
May 26, 2021
3:45 pm

Opening Remarks

Dr. Vera Regitz-Zagrosek is a Cardiologist and Founder, Institute of Gender in Medicine at Charité Berlin and of the International Society Gender Medicine (IGM)
Dr. med. h.c. Vera Regitz-Zagrosek
26 May
Time:  3:45 pm - 4:00 pm
Location:  Dr. Vera Regitz-Zagrosek is a Cardiologist and Founder, Institute of Gender in Medicine at Charité Berlin and of the International Society Gender Medicine (IGM)
Speaker:  Dr. med. h.c. Vera Regitz-Zagrosek
4:00 pm

RoundTable: Innovative Screening +Tracking Technologies

One of the largest innovations in the medical sphere has been changing the point of Care for Patients … giving the patients themselves access to the knowledge and tools needed to monitor their conditions remotely and have a better understanding of their health. This Panel will explore how certain companies are doing just that for gynecological issues: .... Leon A. Boston, CEO of Mobile ODT: using artificial intelligence for cervical screening, evaluation, and sexual assault forensics......... Siew-Veena, Founder of Testmate Health: at home STD Kits....... Dr. Sonali Mohanty Quantius, Founder of Haplomind: supporting perinatal depression and anxiety.
Leon A. BostonDr. Sonali Mohanty Quantius
26 May
Time:  4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Location:  One of the largest innovations in the medical sphere has been changing the point of Care for Patients … giving the patients themselves access to the knowledge and tools needed to monitor their conditions remotely and have a better understanding of their health. This Panel will explore how certain companies are doing just that for gynecological issues: .... Leon A. Boston, CEO of Mobile ODT: using artificial intelligence for cervical screening, evaluation, and sexual assault forensics......... Siew-Veena, Founder of Testmate Health: at home STD Kits....... Dr. Sonali Mohanty Quantius, Founder of Haplomind: supporting perinatal depression and anxiety.
Speaker:  Leon A. BostonDr. Sonali Mohanty Quantius
5:45 pm

RoundTable: Gathering Female Specific Data by Innovative Means

This session will cover the innovative ways companies are going about collecting gender specific data in order to: close the data gap and have a better understanding of female specific metrics; ....Eric Dy, CEO + Co-Founder of Bloom Life: remote personalised maternal and fetal healthcare....... Marina Pavlovic Rivas, CEO + Co-Founder of Eli Health: a product monitoring hormones in saliva at home to enable women to make informed decisions about their reproductive and general health........ Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah, Principle Investigator on the Apple Women’s Health Study: the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health has teamed up with Apple and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) to gain a deeper understanding of how certain demographic and lifestyle factors could have an impact on menstrual cycles and gynecologic conditions.................... Laura Symul, Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford, whose research focuses on women’s health and menstrual health, using a combination of self-tracked data from mobile phone apps and devices and clinical multi-omics data.
Eric DySarah KerruishMarina Pavlovic RivasLaura Symul
26 May
Time:  5:45 pm - 7:15 pm
Location:  This session will cover the innovative ways companies are going about collecting gender specific data in order to: close the data gap and have a better understanding of female specific metrics; ....Eric Dy, CEO + Co-Founder of Bloom Life: remote personalised maternal and fetal healthcare....... Marina Pavlovic Rivas, CEO + Co-Founder of Eli Health: a product monitoring hormones in saliva at home to enable women to make informed decisions about their reproductive and general health........ Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah, Principle Investigator on the Apple Women’s Health Study: the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health has teamed up with Apple and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) to gain a deeper understanding of how certain demographic and lifestyle factors could have an impact on menstrual cycles and gynecologic conditions.................... Laura Symul, Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford, whose research focuses on women’s health and menstrual health, using a combination of self-tracked data from mobile phone apps and devices and clinical multi-omics data.
Speaker:  Eric DySarah KerruishMarina Pavlovic RivasLaura Symul
7:15 pm

Closing Remarks

Dr. Carole Clair specialises in the differences in clinical management induced by the gender of patients. She is also co-head of the department of training, research and innovation at the Center of general medicine and public health. She is a doctor who graduated from the University of Lausanne, FMH specialist in general internal medicine, Master in Science in Epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health.
Dr. Carole Clair
26 May
Time:  7:15 pm - 12:00 am
Location:  Dr. Carole Clair specialises in the differences in clinical management induced by the gender of patients. She is also co-head of the department of training, research and innovation at the Center of general medicine and public health. She is a doctor who graduated from the University of Lausanne, FMH specialist in general internal medicine, Master in Science in Epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health.
Speaker:  Dr. Carole Clair
7:30 pm

FemTech Summit Virtual Mingling

Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned + what other innovations you think are needed in the field of FemTech. Need an Ice-Breaker? How about discussing the way YOU think women w/ gynaecological conditions could best be matched to the appropriate care.
26 May
Time:  7:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Location:  Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you've listened to, learned + what other innovations you think are needed in the field of FemTech. Need an Ice-Breaker? How about discussing the way YOU think women w/ gynaecological conditions could best be matched to the appropriate care.
Day 2
May 27, 2021
4:45 pm

Opening Remarks

Dr. Brigitte Leeners, Director of the Clinic for Reproductive Endocrinology at the University Hospital Zurich who will speak about what the daily life of a patient that comes to her looks like/ the issues they face and how innovative technologies can help with treatment/ facilitate their daily life
Dr. Brigitte Leeners
27 May
Time:  4:45 pm - 5:00 pm
Location:  Dr. Brigitte Leeners, Director of the Clinic for Reproductive Endocrinology at the University Hospital Zurich who will speak about what the daily life of a patient that comes to her looks like/ the issues they face and how innovative technologies can help with treatment/ facilitate their daily life
Speaker:  Dr. Brigitte Leeners
5:00 pm

RoundTable: The future of Contraception and Fertility

The field of Fertility and Contraception has long been opaque and difficult to navigate, not mention a field rife with unpleasant and unforeseen Side Effects. Medicine as a whole, however, is entering an era of personalization – this panel will explore in what ways this will revolutionize female contraception (is it impossible to envision a future where female contraception is more specifically tailored to the user?) and fertility....... Pascal Koenig, CEO + Co-Founder of AVA: a bracelet that tracks multiple physiological parameters, including pulse rate, breathing rate, and temperature in order to detect the five most fertile days of a woman’s cycle in real time, while also delivering personalized insight about reproductive health and pregnancy .........Frederik Petursson Madsen, CEO + Co-Founder of Oui: a new approach to contraception that works by topically engineering the cervical mucus to provide effective contraception with minimal side-effects....... Dr. Lynae Brayboy, Chief Medical Officer of Clue: an FDA approved menstrual tracking app........ Eirini Rapti, CEO + Founder of Inne: which uses the hormones found in saliva to determine a woman’s most fertile window thus acting as both a fertility aid or a form of contraception
Eirini RaptiDr. Lynae BrayboyFrederik Petursson MadsenPascal Koenig
27 May
Time:  5:00 pm - 6:30 pm
Location:  The field of Fertility and Contraception has long been opaque and difficult to navigate, not mention a field rife with unpleasant and unforeseen Side Effects. Medicine as a whole, however, is entering an era of personalization – this panel will explore in what ways this will revolutionize female contraception (is it impossible to envision a future where female contraception is more specifically tailored to the user?) and fertility....... Pascal Koenig, CEO + Co-Founder of AVA: a bracelet that tracks multiple physiological parameters, including pulse rate, breathing rate, and temperature in order to detect the five most fertile days of a woman’s cycle in real time, while also delivering personalized insight about reproductive health and pregnancy .........Frederik Petursson Madsen, CEO + Co-Founder of Oui: a new approach to contraception that works by topically engineering the cervical mucus to provide effective contraception with minimal side-effects....... Dr. Lynae Brayboy, Chief Medical Officer of Clue: an FDA approved menstrual tracking app........ Eirini Rapti, CEO + Founder of Inne: which uses the hormones found in saliva to determine a woman’s most fertile window thus acting as both a fertility aid or a form of contraception
Speaker:  Eirini RaptiDr. Lynae BrayboyFrederik Petursson MadsenPascal Koenig
6:45 pm

RoundTable: Pain and Symptom Management

From as far back as Ancient Egypt medicine has been rife with recorded descriptions of gynecological conditions and the physiological pain they cause. In fact, ancient Egypt has the first recorded use of the term ‘wandering uterus’ – but it was not until ancient Greece and then Rome after it that the term ‘hysteria’ was coined, often used to dismiss a vast array of symptoms exhibited by women, attributed to their physiological abnormalities. And yet a disturbing lack of innovation to help track, manage and perhaps even cure the pain caused by gynecological conditions has been historically achieved – until today. In this panel we explore the innovative technologies being put forth to treat gynecological conditions: from pre-empting menopausal symptoms, to treating endometriosis with cannaboids to the all importance of tracking the symptoms to help manage them......Alexandra Alvergne; an Oxford Fellow and CNRS researcher whose research focuses on understanding the relationship between reproduction and female health, including working on contraceptive dynamics, infection and menstrual health, diversity in age at menopause and the impact of reproduction on ageing......... Dr, Sari Prutchi Sagiv, VP of R&D at Gynica : a medical company researching and developing cannabinoid solutions to target gynaecological symptoms and diseases......... Cécile Real, Co-Founder + CEO of EndoDiag: company developing new endometriosis diagnostic solutions for healthcare professionals. These solutions are intended to contribute to a better endometriosis diagnosis, a more personalized patient management, more efficient treatment options and fertility strategy.......... Chantelle Bell & Anya Roy, Co-Founders of Syrona Health : a startup that tracks endo and health symptoms, and allows users to access a community of patients with similar symptoms as well as providing doctor approved insights.
Chantelle BellCécile RealAlexandra AlvergneDr. Sari Prutchi SagivAnya Roy
27 May
Time:  6:45 pm - 8:15 pm
Location:  From as far back as Ancient Egypt medicine has been rife with recorded descriptions of gynecological conditions and the physiological pain they cause. In fact, ancient Egypt has the first recorded use of the term ‘wandering uterus’ – but it was not until ancient Greece and then Rome after it that the term ‘hysteria’ was coined, often used to dismiss a vast array of symptoms exhibited by women, attributed to their physiological abnormalities. And yet a disturbing lack of innovation to help track, manage and perhaps even cure the pain caused by gynecological conditions has been historically achieved – until today. In this panel we explore the innovative technologies being put forth to treat gynecological conditions: from pre-empting menopausal symptoms, to treating endometriosis with cannaboids to the all importance of tracking the symptoms to help manage them......Alexandra Alvergne; an Oxford Fellow and CNRS researcher whose research focuses on understanding the relationship between reproduction and female health, including working on contraceptive dynamics, infection and menstrual health, diversity in age at menopause and the impact of reproduction on ageing......... Dr, Sari Prutchi Sagiv, VP of R&D at Gynica : a medical company researching and developing cannabinoid solutions to target gynaecological symptoms and diseases......... Cécile Real, Co-Founder + CEO of EndoDiag: company developing new endometriosis diagnostic solutions for healthcare professionals. These solutions are intended to contribute to a better endometriosis diagnosis, a more personalized patient management, more efficient treatment options and fertility strategy.......... Chantelle Bell & Anya Roy, Co-Founders of Syrona Health : a startup that tracks endo and health symptoms, and allows users to access a community of patients with similar symptoms as well as providing doctor approved insights.
Speaker:  Chantelle BellCécile RealAlexandra AlvergneDr. Sari Prutchi SagivAnya Roy
8:15 pm

Closing Remarks

The Rector of ETH Zurich will deliver the closing remarks to the ETH Zurich FemTech Summit
Prof. Sarah Springman
27 May
Time:  8:15 pm - 8:30 pm
Location:  The Rector of ETH Zurich will deliver the closing remarks to the ETH Zurich FemTech Summit
Speaker:  Prof. Sarah Springman
8:30 pm

FemTech Summit Virtual Mingling

Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you listened to + learned today. Need an Ice-Breaker? Try coming up with what YOU think the biggest data set missing for female health is + how you think one might go about finding it.
27 May
Time:  8:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Location:  Connect w/ other attendees to discuss what you listened to + learned today. Need an Ice-Breaker? Try coming up with what YOU think the biggest data set missing for female health is + how you think one might go about finding it.

About the Summit

Hosted annually, the FemTechnology Summit features top Startups, Researchers and Medical Doctors working in the field of women’s health – brining them together to showcase innovations happening in the field and highlight where work still needs to be done. 

As a leading international academic institution at the cutting edge of health sciences and technology, the aim of the Department of Health Sciences and Technology (D-​HEST) is to create the foundations for sustaining and improving the quality of life for people into old age. The Department of Health Sciences and Technology accelerates the transfer of knowledge and technology in clinics, industry and society, and educates a new generation of students at the interface of science, technology, and medicine.

ETHZ Human Medicine: The path via ETH Zurich (for the Bachelor’s degree) and one of its partner universities (for the Master’s degree) lays the foundations for an education in human medicine that will go on to open up opportunities for exchange with the world of science and pave the way towards new developments and technologies. Tackling methods used in the world today, for instance in the areas of personalised medicine and medical engineering, provides a greater understanding of the opportunities and limitations of future treatment methods.

Women at the Table,  founded and based in International Geneva, is the first Civil Society Organization to focus on feminist systems change by exercising leverage points in the key sectors of technology, the economy, sustainability and democratic governance. We accomplish this  by using the prism of technology, innovation & AI.  

Co-founders of the <A+> Alliance for Inclusive Algorithms, we focus on correcting algorithmic bias. This bias is notably present in medical research and outcomes which is why we are proud to co-sponsor the first ETHZ FemTech Summit.   

We are leadership of the UN Women Generation Equality Forum Action Coalition for Technology & Innovation for Gender Equality. 

Oriana Kraft conceived, curated and produced the first edition of the FemTechnology Summit as her Bachelor’s Research Project at ETH Zurich.  Since then she’s become passionate about improving women’s health; from startup ecosystems, to medical education and convinced of the need to connect the great innovations happening in FemTech with the huge remaining gaps in medicine for women, particularly connecting innovative solutions directly with the patients who need them most. 

Since graduating from ETH Zurich, Oriana decided to produce the second edition of the FemTechnology Summit, is working on a media project regarding the personalisation of women’s health and an Aggregator.

PODCASTS: 

–> About the Summit <–

https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/how-technology-can-help-with-perinatal-depression/46636416

https://femtechinsider.com/femtechnology-femtech-summit-interview-oriana-kraft/

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3kBEnPmV5pTLbbziyF3riw?si=L8NNgz_7RT6fKdIqNEQm2g&dl_branch=1

https://rss.com/podcasts/epfelles/

–> About Hormones + Female Health <–

 https://helloclue.com/podcast/hormonal-podcast-clue

ARTICLES:

–> About our Panelists <– 

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/07/health/femtech-women-health-care.html

https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/how-an-app-is-helping-women-self-diagnose-perinatal-depression/46515038

https://www.20minutes.fr/sante/2026871-20170310-bientot-solution-faciliter-diagnostic-endometriose

https://www.letemps.ch/societe/carole-clair-une-vocation-legalite

https://www.letemps.ch/societe/laura-symul-un-oeil-regles-jouent-un-role-crucial-survie-espece

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    Relive the 2021 FemTech Summit

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aDF9niqcsE

     

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcyDG6m4Gck

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kjEDaOGIeI

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yp57al3EU60

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HM6XQGIhmK8

    Sponsors

    Amplification Partners

    Why we need FemTech
    1/3 of women In the UK will suffer from a reproductive or gynaecological problem - yet only 2.5% of publicly funded research is consecrated to reproductive health research
    Why we need Inclusive Research
    8 out of 10 drugs withdrawn from the US market between 1997 and 2000 were banned because of side effects occurring exclusively in women
    The Cost
    The Yearly Economic burden of female health is an estimated 500 billion. Yet only an estimated 4% is devoted to research and development for healthcare issues facing the female population.
    The Problem Goes beyond reproductive Health
    Women face: 5x more mental health issues than men, have 3x as many heart attacks and are 7x more vulnerable to autoimmune disease