Agile Therapeutics sells a weekly hormonal birth control patch called Twirla. The company has several other contraceptives undergoing clinical trials.

Focusing entirely on ovarian cancer, which affects one out of 70 women, the US biotech Aspira Women’s Health provides several diagnostic and genetic predisposition testing solutions for this disease.

The US biotech firm Context Therapeutics is developing new treatments for cancers specific to women, such as breast, ovarian and endometrial cancer. All of its treatments are in the early stages of development.

Founded in 2005, the US company Daré Bioscience develops drugs exclusively for women. Its first treatment, DARE-BV1, was approved by the FDA in December 2021 to treat bacterial vaginosis, an infection that affects 21 million women in the United States. The company has another drug that is still in its development pipeline to treat female sexual arousal disorder.

The pill is no longer the symbol of freedom it used to be. More and more young women are going off hormonal contraceptives out of concern for their health and the side effects they cause. While more than 50% of women aged 15 to 49 living in Switzerland took the pill in 1992, only 31% did so in 2017, according to the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH). "This decline in use that began in 2012 is due to the scandals reported in the press involving third and fourth generation pills containing both oestrogen and progestin," the FOPH says. Consequently, in recent years a myriad of companies have taken the opportunity to come up with new birth control methods. Startups such as the German company Clue and the Swedish company Natural Cycles have developed all-digital contraceptives that have been green-lighted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The US company Evofem Biosciences brings another approach: Phexxi gel. The way it works is simple. The gel stabilises the pH of the vagina, keeping it naturally inhospitable to sperm. The product is about 93% effective when used as directed by a healthcare provider, and 86% effective with "typical" use. This rates it on par with condoms, which are 87% effective in preventing pregnancy. Unlike traditional spermicides, which are detergents, Phexxi does not damage the vaginal walls, the manufacturer says. Approved since November 2020 by the FDA, Phexxi has since been on the market in the United States. Most analysts recommend buying shares in the company, which has an investigational candidate in its pipeline that prevents urogenital chlamydia and gonorrhoea infections.

The US biotech firm Femasys, which launched its IPO in June 2021, commercialises FemCath, an FDA-approved intrauterine catheter used to examine the fallopian tubes, and the FemCerv, a medical device used to collect samples of endocervical tissue. Both products are used for infertility diagnostics.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that more than 2.2 million women were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020, resulting in 685,000 deaths. Since the 1980s, improvements in diagnosis, thanks to early tumour detection, have reduced mortality from this form of cancer by 40% in high-income countries. But treatment, which usually combines surgery and radiotherapy, is often a traumatic experience for patients, especially when the entire breast is removed. To solve the problem, the Israeli company IceCure has developed the ProSense system for cryoablation of breast tumours.

How it works is that the doctor, guided by ultrasound, percutaneously introduces the probe-equipped device into the tumour. Liquid nitrogen is then injected into the tumour area, reducing the temperature to -160°C and destroying the cancer cells. Compared to surgery, cryoablation is faster, less painful, and less expensive. In April 2021, the ProSense system was granted Breakthrough Device Designation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It is approved and marketed in Europe and the United States to treat certain forms of breast cancer. The device could also be used to treat other tumours. Listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, IceCure posted sales of $2.75 million in the first nine months of 2021, up 11% from the same period a year earlier. A buy recommendation has been issued on the stock.

InMode commercialises devices that use laser or radio frequency capabilities for non- or minimally-invasive aesthetic procedures (treatment for varicose veins or wrinkles, pigmentation problems, hair removal). Its business is growing fast, as the company expects to generate revenue of between $415 million and $425 million in 2022, a 15% to 20% increase compared to 2021, already a record year for InMode.

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology estimates that nearly 18 million women in the United States suffer from abnormal uterine bleeding. In some cases, the condition can result in a hysterectomy, i.e. the total or partial removal of the uterus. The US company Minerva Surgical has developed and sells minimally invasive medical devices for this procedure. Its potential market is estimated at $900 million per year in the United States alone.

"2022 is starting off in another great way," Leon Van Rompay, CEO of Mithra Women’s Health, commented in a press release on 14 January. What’s all the excitement about? Donesta, a hormone treatment developed by the Belgian company Mithra to reduce vasomotor symptoms (VMS) in menopausal women (e.g. hot flushes), delivered positive top line results from its Phase 3 clinical trial. The study of 2,300 women showed that after three months of treatment, Donesta reduced the frequency of hot flushes by 80% and their severity by 56% from baseline.

If the next results, including the safety assessment, are also positive, Donesta could be granted market authorisation in Europe and the United States by 2024. And it has the potential to become a blockbuster, i.e. a drug that generates more than $1 billion a year. The global menopause market, currently valued at nearly $10 billion, is expected to shoot up to $17 billion by 2027 due to the ageing population around the world. In 2021, Mithra Women’s Health launched the contraceptive pill Estelle, which has since been selling in the United States, Canada and Europe. For the first six months of 2021, the company posted revenue of €12.142 million, compared to €9 million for the whole of 2020. All analysts covering the company recommend buying the stock.

In 1996, the US company Myriad Genetics was the first to market a genetic screening test for women to assess their breast and ovarian cancer susceptibility. Since then, the company’s portfolio has grown to include a prostate prediction test for men and prenatal screening to identify various genetic conditions in the embryo.

The US company Natera has developed a range of genetic tests for women, including a test to assess breast cancer risk. Panorama, its star product, can detect genetic diseases in an embryo using a simple blood sample taken from the pregnant mother, thus avoiding a much more invasive amniocentesis.

Founded in 1984 in the United States, the Nu Skin brand is mostly known for its anti-ageing cosmetics primarily aimed at women.

2021 was a pivotal year for ­ObsEva. Listed on the Nasdaq since March 2017 and on the Swiss Stock Exchange since July 2018, the Geneva-based biotech firm filed an application with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last September for its most advanced drug, Linzagolix. If all goes to plan, the drug could be approved in the United States in 2022 to treat fibroids, a uterine condition that affects 20% to 40% of women over age 30, causing pain, bleeding and even infertility. Linzagolix is a tremendous step forward as it shrinks the size of fibroids without invasive surgery. Market potential is huge: every year in the United States, 300,000 hysterectomies are performed due to uterine fibroids.

If Linzagolix is launched to market, ObsEva will be able to start generating revenue. The company is also conducting clinical trials to prove the effectiveness of its drug to treat endometriosis. In September 2020, Wedbush Securities analyst Liana Moussatos estimated in Swissquote Magazine that Linzagolix sales would peak at $1.1 billion for fibroids and $653 million for endometriosis in 2026 in the US alone. Most analysts recommend buying the stock, which has literally collapsed since its IPO on the Swiss Stock Exchange in 2018. The share went from ending its first day on the Swiss Stock Exchange at a price of 20 Swiss francs to currently trading at less than 2 Swiss francs.

The US firm Olema Oncology develops treatments for endocrine-driven cancers, i.e. linked to hormones. The company has drugs in its pipeline, all of which are currently in clinical trials, against breast cancer and gynaecological cancers.

This health insurer specialising in fertility care in the United States expects its revenue to grow by almost 50% in 2021, compared to 2020. The company’s customer line-up includes several big names – Uber, Google, Microsoft, PayPal – which provide their employees with Progyny’s services.

What should be the most beautiful moment in one’s life can turn into a nightmare. In the year following childbirth, 10% to 15% of new mothers suffer from post-partum depression. Far from being a case of the blues, this disease has many harmful consequences. Without help, this depression can become chronic and develop unnoticed. The mother loses confidence in her abilities and thinks she is a bad parent. Couples feel the strain, and some do not survive. Children are the most vulnerable victims of post-partum depression. Their development, which depends to a large extent on their relationship and interactions with their parents, is disrupted.

To treat these new mums, the US company Sage Therapeutics has developed Zulresso. In March 2019, the drug became the first (and so far only) FDA-approved treatment specifically for post-partum depression, which has until now been treated with conventional anti-depressants. In both controlled studies, Zulresso demonstrated superior performance over a placebo in improving depression symptoms. The only drawback is that the drug passes into breast milk, which can cause problems for breastfeeding mothers. Most analysts recommend holding shares, which has fluctuated considerably in recent years.2010

Every year worldwide, 15 million babies are born premature, i.e. before the 37th week of gestation. That is one in 10 births, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Sadly, nearly 1 million of these infants die from complications due to prematurity, and many survivors suffer lifelong disabilities, including visual and auditory learning disabilities. However, the WHO also estimates that, "more than three quarters of premature babies can be saved with feasible, cost-effective care, such as... antenatal steroid injections."

To identify women at higher risk of preterm delivery, the US biotech company Sera Prognostics has developed a blood test called PreTRM. The test can predict whether a mother will give birth preterm, by measuring several proteins in her blood. This will allow doctors to make more informed decisions based on the specific risk of each patient. The PreTRM test is currently the only blood-based biomarker for preterm birth risk licensed and sold in the United States. Sera went public in July 2021 at a price of $16 and is currently trading at around $7. Most analysts recommend buying shares, which they believe could reach $18 by the end of 2022.

The US firm TherapeuticsMD describes itself as "an innovative pharmaceutical company exclusively committed to advancing the health of women," and commercialises a wide range of products in the segment. Its solutions include a hormonal birth control ring called Annovera, a hormonal drug that reduces menopausal hot flushes (Bijuva), a hormone that reduces vaginal pain during sex due to menopause, and vitamin supplements for pregnant women (BocaGreen).

Founded in 1994, the Swedish company Vitrolife was one of the world’s first companies to provide in vitro fertilisation (IVF) laboratories with culture media. Today, the group’s solutions cover the entire IVF process, ranging from oocyte retrieval to embryo transfer and cryopreservation.