Diagnostic Areas

Endometrial Cancer

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Endometrial cancer is a significant and growing health concern with ~400,000 new cases per annum globally, and ~60% increase in global incidence by 2050 [1,2,16]. Rising obesity rates, ageing populations, and increased use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) have contributed to the rising incidence [1, 3-6]. Post-menopausal bleeding, a common symptom of endometrial cancer, frequently leads to urgent investigations [1,7]. However, the current diagnostic pathway relies on invasive procedures, such as hysteroscopy or endometrial biopsy, which are painful, costly, and require specialist expertise in secondary care [8,9]. These limitations often result in delayed diagnoses, putting women at greater risk of progression to advanced disease and worse outcomes [3]. There is an urgent need for a diagnostic tool that is accurate, non-invasive, and accessible in primary care to address these challenges [3]

Ovarian Cancer

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Known as the “silent killer,” early symptoms of ovarian cancer are vague and non-specific [10,11], leading to late diagnosis and poor survival rates [12]. Ovarian cancer is an increasing health concern with over 300,000 cases globally and incidence predicted to rise by 55% by 2050 [16]. Current diagnostic methods are highly invasive (surgical biopsies, laparoscopy) and require specialist intervention and further delay treatment. The lack of a reliable, non-invasive diagnostic test for ovarian cancer makes early detection and intervention difficult [10,13,14]. Early diagnosis is key to improving survival rates, as women diagnosed at an early stage have a far better prognosis [12, 15].

Biomarker discovery pipeline

Driven by high unmet need, our internal biomarker research program focuses on the discovery of diagnostic biomarkers for endometrial and ovarian cancers.

We leverage our internal hologenomic pipeline established by our parent company TOGL, used to identify novel biomarkers and establish superior stratification of colorectal cancer patients by disease site and stage [17]. The pipeline had been adapted for use on vaginal mucosal samples collected with the Ellele Sampling Device to generate a multiomic view of the female reproductive tract.

Hologenomic approach

Rather than focusing on a single genetic marker, our hologenomic approach captures both host and microbial signals to reflect the true biological complexity of disease. By combining host mutation and methylation analysis with microbiome sequencing, and integrating these data using bioinformatics and machine learning, we generate richer, more reliable diagnostic insight.

Mutation

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  • We use next-generation sequencing to detect DNA mutations in shed cells from the upper and lower reproductive tract.

Methylation

  • We detect epigenetic changes revealing subtle changes in gene regulation and cell state that cannot be detected using mutation analysis alone.

Microbiome

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  • Larger sample volumes allow us to analyse the vaginal microbiome and obtain a full microbiome profile present in vaginal mucus.

Clinical studies

If you would like to find out more about our clinical trials, you can read more here.

References

  1. Crosbie EJ, et al. Endometrial cancer. Lancet. 2022;399(10333):1412–1428.
  2. Shen Y, et al. Minimally invasive approaches for the early detection of endometrial cancer. Mol Cancer. 2023;22(1):53.
  3. Makker V, et al. Endometrial cancer. Nat Rev Dis Primers. 2021;7(1):88.
  4. Sung H, et al. Global cancer statistics 2020: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2021;71(3):209–249.
  5. Morice P, et al. Endometrial cancer. Lancet. 2016;387:1094–1108.
  6. Lauby-Secretan B, et al. Body fatness and cancer—viewpoint of the IARC Working Group. N Engl J Med. 2016;375:794–798.
  7. Clarke MA, et al. Association of endometrial cancer risk with postmenopausal bleeding in women: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Intern Med. 2018;178(9):1210–1222.
  8. Giampaolino P, et al. Office hysteroscopy in the management of women with postmenopausal bleeding. Climacteric. 2020;23:369–375.
  9. Zhang G, et al. Microscale endometrial sampling biopsy in detecting endometrial cancer and atypical hyperplasia in a population of 1551 women: a comparative study with hysteroscopic endometrial biopsy. Chin Med J (Engl). 2020;134(2):193–199.
  10. Hong MK, et al. Early diagnosis of ovarian cancer: a comprehensive review of the advances, challenges, and future directions. Diagnostics (Basel). 2025;15(4):406.
  11. Feeney L, et al. Liquid biopsy in ovarian cancer: catching the silent killer before it strikes. World J Clin Oncol. 2020;11(11):868–889.
  12. Cancer Research UK. Ovarian cancer survival statistics. Cancer Research UK; 2025.
  13. Jacobs IJ, et al. Ovarian cancer screening and mortality in the UK Collaborative Trial of Ovarian Cancer Screening (UKCTOCS): a randomised controlled trial. Lancet. 2016;387:945–956.
  14. Bhadra M, et al. Current strategies for early epithelial ovarian cancer detection using miRNA as a potential tool. Front Mol Biosci. 2024;11:1361601.
  15. Torre LA, et al. Ovarian cancer statistics, 2018. CA Cancer J Clin. 2018;68:284–296.
  16. Bray F, et al. Global cancer statistics 2022: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2024;74(3):229–263.
  17. Tock AJ, et al. Hologenomic analysis of rectal mucus sampling for detection of adenomatous polyps and colorectal cancer. Nat Commun. 2025;16(1):10876.