Impli secures £1.4M NIHR grant to advance continuous hormone monitoring for IVF
"Continuous hormone monitoring has the potential to change the landscape of fertility treatment"
London-based startup Impli has secured a £1.4 million grant from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) to advance clinical validation of its continuous hormone monitoring technology for fertility treatment.
The funding will support a 30-month consortium programme bringing together Impli, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, King’s College London, Fertility Europe and specialist medical device manufacturer TTP to take the company’s BEAM (Bio-Endocrine Analysis Monitor) biosensor from prototype to first-in-human clinical validation.
Impli is developing a minimally invasive microneedle patch designed to continuously measure estradiol, luteinizing hormone (LH) and progesterone in interstitial fluid. The patch transmits data wirelessly to a smartphone, where AI algorithms convert raw sensor signals into real-time hormone trends.
The company is initially focused on IVF, where treatment decisions are often made using hormone readings that may already be 24 to 48 hours old. According to Impli, critical events such as LH surges, progesterone dips linked to implantation failure and early signs of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome can be missed between tests.
“Continuous hormone monitoring has the potential to change the landscape of fertility treatment, both in terms of clinical care and patient experience,” said Mr Sotirios Saravelos, Consultant Gynaecologist and Reproductive Medicine Subspecialist at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and the Wolfson Fertility Centre.
“Rather than snapshots taken at fixed points in time, with Impli we will have access to a live feed of each patient’s hormonal response, allowing us to personalise care in a way that has not been possible before.”
Infertility affects one in six people globally, yet IVF success rates remain between 15% and 32%, dropping to as low as 6% for women over 43. Treatment can require up to ten clinic visits for blood draws and monitoring during a single cycle.
The NIHR award will fund final device development and manufacturing, a 25-participant pilot study through Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust’s Clinical Research Facility, AI model development, patient and public involvement activities, and regulatory and health economic work to support future NHS adoption.
“We are not just building a device, we are building the evidence base to show that continuous hormone monitoring is possible, clinically meaningful, and ready for the real world,” said founder and CEO Anna Luisa Schaffgotsch.
“With an exceptional consortium behind us, we now have the funding, the expertise and the clinical pathway to do that properly. The NIHR i4i award is a pivotal moment for Impli and for continuous hormone monitoring as a field.”
The company sees IVF as its initial entry point, but says the same biosensing platform could eventually be applied across PCOS, endometriosis, menopause, endocrinology and hormonally driven cancers.
Impli has developed three functional prototypes, completed in-vitro pre-clinical studies and begun animal trials. The company also has an existing strategic partnership with Bayer focused on real-time hormone biosensing.