DuoFertility monitor a success in Britain expands into the US

Fertility monitor which accurately measures basal body temperature is a success in the UK, helping many couples have a baby. Most entrepreneurs care deeply about their businesses but they’re not usually reduced to tears by a successful sale. For Oriane Chausiaux, of Cambridge Temperature Concepts, which provides fertility monitoring for couples struggling to have a baby, the early successes of the business had as much emotional impact as financial. “After the thirtieth pregnancy I managed to stop crying when I heard the news,” says Dr Chausiaux. The company makes a monitor called DuoFertility. This is a small sensor worn by a woman under her armpit, which sends signals about body temperature and sleep patterns throughout the day and night to an analytics centre in Cambridge, using wireless technology. These signals build up a picture about when she is most fertile, because the presence of different hormones affects body temperature. Users can call up the centre at any time to discuss the results with a fertility expert. The device is not cheap – it sells for about £500 in the UK, through the company’s website, Boots online and Pride Angel, but includes all the analytics and communications with the company, which offers a guaranteed refund to women who don’t fall pregnant within 12 months. The price is cheap compared to IVF treatment, which costs between £5,000 and £7,000 per cycle in the UK. The monitor is only suitable for couples who don’t have medical issues that mean IVF is the only way they could conceive but, because about a third of patients who have IVF in the UK suffer from “unexplained infertility”, there is still a large market to go for, says Dr Shamus Husheer, chief executive. The monitor had an unconventional birth. It was the brainchild of Dr Husheer when he was a nuclear and structural chemistry PhD student, working in a particle accelerator in France. He was inspired by the difficulty his parents had in conceiving him and by new battery technology which generated power from the body. He recruited Dr Chausiaux, who is now the head scientist, and four other Cambridge PhD students to help him build a prototype and come up with a business plan. What they developed was a medical device that, in its first form, was “a shoebox full of electronics which you strapped to your body”. The idea won the scientists £1,000 and then £20,000 in competitions run by Cambridge University. They used the money to pay for filing a patent and building a prototype. At the end of 2007, they raised £250,000 from angel investors in the Cambridge area, to develop the DuoFertility monitor. Even when they were still at the shoebox stage, they were contacted by couples wanting to pay to have a monitor built for them. Dr Chausiaux says: “That showed us the need really was there.” Dr Husheer adds: “We also didn’t appreciate how huge the mental and psychological side was when we started off. The couples were always on the phone to us to talk about their condition and we realised we were providing a service that was not available to them anywhere else.” After being screened to check their fertility issues are within the limits the monitor can help with, Cambridge Temperature Concepts says couples who use it for six months have the same chance of getting pregnant as someone of the same age on a cycle of IVF. While growth in the past four years has been “spiky”, Dr Husheer admits, the firm now has 2,000 customers and expects turnover to rise to £2.5m in 2012-13. However, growing through UK retail has been slower and trickier than the pair anticipated and the founders are in the middle of a £1m fund-raising to help to pay for plans to expand in the US. They are hoping that American doctors will recommend the product to patients. The opportunity in the US, where a cycle of IVF can cost as much as $20,000 (£12,500), is an order of magnitude greater than in the UK, Dr Husheer says. “We believe there are 400,000 women in the US a year for whom our product is the right thing.” However, there is also a new opportunity in the UK – the company has been accepted for a trial by the NHS, with the same guarantee that it will reimburse the health service after a year if the patient does not fall pregnant. “There’s a push into payment for outcomes by the Department of Health, so we’re ticking the political boxes too,” says Dr Husheer. Since the first fund-raising from angel investors, they have raised money “a couple” more times the same way, although they still own just over 50pc of the company. “The main things we need to finance now are some people with deep commercial experience in the US, and staff in the UK to do the fertility analysis,” says Dr Husheer. The company hopes to be able to provide the same level of support as it does now for 10,000 people after this round of hiring. All the analytics staff will be based in Cambridge, in large part hired from the town’s universities. The DuoFertility monitor has gained the approval of the US medical regulator, the FDA, and the company is marketing it to the obstetricians and gynaecologists American women typically visit rather than GPs. “Our experience with the FDA was not nearly as bad as some of the rumours suggest,” said Dr Husheer. “They seemed pretty responsive to us because our device is non-invasive and we have a lot of field data from using it in Europe.” Article: 13th November 2012 www.telegraph.co.uk

DuoFertility - Your very own fertility PA

A new fertility product to help you conceive naturally How the DuoFertility programme can help you overcome the fertility challenge and take control of an emotional journey. Lara’s story Lara heard about DuoFertility from her mum, after she read about it in the paper. ‘DuoFertility was just what I needed. I wanted to be reassured that I was actually ovulating and if possible avoid, or even just identify whether I might need fertility treatment. DuoFertility helped us do this effectively and in the shortest amount of time possible so we didn’t delay.’ DuoFertility kept a close eye on Lara’s cycles and the DuoFertility reports gave her the information she was looking for. ‘It was great to see that I was ovulating every month and this really put my mind at rest, especially because I knew age was a big factor in fertility.’ ‘I really liked being able to ring up and speak to someone about my charts too for that extra detail about my cycles. Although I thought I was reading the graphs properly, it was reassuring to talk things through with a fertility advisor to make sure I didn’t come to the wrong conclusions.’ ‘In the end, we didn’t need any treatments because DuoFertility had helped us conceive after only five months into the monitoring programme’ After receiving her kit, Lara quickly found DuoFertility was really simple to use. ‘I do lots of swimming and exercise so at first I was unsure how I would get on with attaching the sensor every day. My bra strap secured the sensor in place and so I felt comfortable wearing it. I soon forgot I was wearing the sensor at all.’ Lara wanted to share her experiences with others to encourage them to consider what DuoFertility can offer. ‘I have talked to colleagues about DuoFertility. They confided in me about their infertility issues after I opened up about my own journey. I knew they could also benefit from the support DuoFertility gave me.’ DuoFertility is an extremely accurate yet simple to use fertility monitoring service. Get the convenience of fertility predictions up to six days in advance of your fertile window, giving you plenty of time to plan ahead. As well as the fertility predictions, the monitor confirms ovulation actually occurred which is that extra reassurance your cycle is working as it should be. From the comfort of your own home, your plug-in device connects to the DuoFertility Centre via your computer. The team of fertility experts will review any unusual patterns in the menstrual cycle in case there are reasons to follow up on testing or treatment with your doctor – which can help avoid any further delays in conceiving. The DuoFertility Money back guarantee Qualifying couples can apply to use DuoFertility on a 12 month programme with the promise of their money back if they don’t manage to conceive naturally The reassuring element to DuoFertility is that all couples can seek advice from the expert team whenever they have questions. This includes being able to ask the team of advisers whether DuoFertility is suitable in exactly your own situation. Find out if DuoFertility is right for you by using the online tool Article: 18th August 2012 www.duofertility.com

DuoFertility - Your very own fertility PA

A new fertility product to help you conceive naturally How the DuoFertility programme can help you overcome the fertility challenge and take control of an emotional journey. Lara’s story Lara heard about DuoFertility from her mum, after she read about it in the paper. ‘DuoFertility was just what I needed. I wanted to be reassured that I was actually ovulating and if possible avoid, or even just identify whether I might need fertility treatment. DuoFertility helped us do this effectively and in the shortest amount of time possible so we didn’t delay.’ DuoFertility kept a close eye on Lara’s cycles and the DuoFertility reports gave her the information she was looking for. ‘It was great to see that I was ovulating every month and this really put my mind at rest, especially because I knew age was a big factor in fertility.’ ‘I really liked being able to ring up and speak to someone about my charts too for that extra detail about my cycles. Although I thought I was reading the graphs properly, it was reassuring to talk things through with a fertility advisor to make sure I didn’t come to the wrong conclusions.’ ‘In the end, we didn’t need any treatments because DuoFertility had helped us conceive after only five months into the monitoring programme’ After receiving her kit, Lara quickly found DuoFertility was really simple to use. ‘I do lots of swimming and exercise so at first I was unsure how I would get on with attaching the sensor every day. My bra strap secured the sensor in place and so I felt comfortable wearing it. I soon forgot I was wearing the sensor at all.’ Lara wanted to share her experiences with others to encourage them to consider what DuoFertility can offer. ‘I have talked to colleagues about DuoFertility. They confided in me about their infertility issues after I opened up about my own journey. I knew they could also benefit from the support DuoFertility gave me.’ DuoFertility is an extremely accurate yet simple to use fertility monitoring service. Get the convenience of fertility predictions up to six days in advance of your fertile window, giving you plenty of time to plan ahead. As well as the fertility predictions, the monitor confirms ovulation actually occurred which is that extra reassurance your cycle is working as it should be. From the comfort of your own home, your plug-in device connects to the DuoFertility Centre via your computer. The team of fertility experts will review any unusual patterns in the menstrual cycle in case there are reasons to follow up on testing or treatment with your doctor – which can help avoid any further delays in conceiving. The DuoFertility Money back guarantee Qualifying couples can apply to use DuoFertility on a 12 month programme with the promise of their money back if they don’t manage to conceive naturally The reassuring element to DuoFertility is that all couples can seek advice from the expert team whenever they have questions. This includes being able to ask the team of advisers whether DuoFertility is suitable in exactly your own situation. Find out if DuoFertility is right for you by using the online tool Article: 18th August 2012 www.duofertility.com

New Fertility programme, DuoFertility, is now available to American couples to help them get pregnant.

Over two million American couples are having problems getting pregnant.[1] The standard treatment which can help these couples conceive is in-vitro fertilization (IVF). IVF can change lives but can also be very emotionally, physically and financially draining. The DuoFertility programme is a highly effective method to help couples conceive. The programme is totally non-invasive and drug free, yet published studies have shown a pregnancy rate similar to that of a cycle of IVF after just six months of use[2]. It uses a revolutionary sensor to monitor a woman’s body 24 hours a day, indicating the couple’s most fertile days, giving couples the very best chance of getting pregnant. Fertility experts review the data with the couples regularly to provide feedback. Studies have shown that DuoFertility can help 8 out of 10 infertile couples, including half of all those seeking invasive clinical procedures such as IVF2. DuoFertility has helped hundreds of couples get pregnant in Europe. Now that same help is available to American couples for $795. In the US, a single cycle of IVF will cost on average $15,000 to the couple and is rarely covered by health insurance, leaving many American couples struggling to afford fertility treatment. At one-twentieth the cost of a single cycle of IVF, DuoFertility has the potential to help millions of American couples to turn their dreams of a family into reality. To find out if DuoFertility can help you get pregnant, you can use the DuoFertility suitability tool here. You can purchase DuoFertility, which is FDA cleared, from the US on the DuoFertility website or the Pride Angel website. [1] Centers for Disease Control and Preventio (CDC) :http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/fertile.htm [2] Chausiaux et al., “Pregnancy Prognosis in Infertile Couples on the DuoFertility Programme Compared with In Vitro Fertilisation/Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection”, European Obstetrics & Gynaecology 2011;6(2):92-4 online PDF: http://bit.ly/IfjFiY Article: 3rd July 2012 www.duofertility.com.us

IVF not needed for many infertile couples - DuoFertility study shows

A new study published in European Obstetrics & Gynaecology shows that just six months using the DuoFertility monitor and service gives the same chance of pregnancy as a cycle of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) for many infertile couples. This study demonstrates that there is a viable non-invasive, drug-free alternative to IVF for thousands of couples, with the potential to save them (and the NHS) millions of pounds each year.

The paper is the first peer-reviewed publication of clinical pregnancy rates using the new DuoFertility product and service. Lead author, Dr. Oriane Chausiaux said “The results show that for couples suffering from unexplained infertility as well as a variety of other factors, twelve months using DuoFertility yields a higher clinical pregnancy rate than a cycle of IVF.” Not only is IVF invasive for the woman and demeaning for the man, but for many couples it is a procedure needlessly costing the NHS, or the couple themselves, thousands of pounds. A typical cycle of IVF in the private sector costs £7,000 all up. By comparison the DuoFertility program offers a year of monitoring and support for £500 - and it comes with a 12-month money-back pregnancy guarantee.

The publication coincides with the 200th reported pregnancy by users of DuoFertility, which was celebrated at the weekend with a party hosted by medical personality Dr. Miriam Stoppard. Dr. Stoppard, addressing the assembled parents and parents-to-be, said "[it is] the first product or service that I have seen in this arena which truly wraps around all of the needs of the couple, from the medical monitoring, to the review of this data by experts, and then the all-important emotional support that is provided."..."The results of the scientific studies on pregnancy rate are very encouraging, but do need to be followed up with live birth rates, and I look forward to seeing further research."

The authors of the study caution that although non-invasive and drug-free, DuoFertility is not suitable for all couples. Dr. Husheer, inventor of DuoFertility explained “although DuoFertility is suitable for around 80% of infertile couples, there are some couples with medically identified conditions that prevent natural conception, such as a woman with two blocked fallopian tubes. In these cases IVF is absolutely the right thing to do, enabling conception where it was previously a physical impossibility.”

About Cambridge Temperature Concepts Cambridge Temperature Concepts Limited (CTC) has developed a new kind of wireless physiological monitor, which measures body temperature, heat flow and movement with unprecedented resolution. The first application (DuoFertility) is in conception assistance for couples suffering infertility, however work is underway in areas as diverse as sleep quality monitoring, hypoglycemia detection, infection control and a range of veterinary applications. DuoFertility is a non-invasive, easy-to-use female fertility monitor. It is the most natural, convenient, and precise way of maximising the chances of getting pregnant.

CTC was founded by graduate students at the University of Cambridge in, winning business competitions at collegiate, university, regional and national levels prior to Angel funding. Less than 18 months later, the DuoFertility product had progressed from sheet-of-paper through medical device approvals, production prototype, Europe-wide trial, and had gained first direct-to-consumer sales.

Article: by Cambridge Temperature Concepts, 14th December 2011