Women's health
Why is women's health still diagnosed so late, and where can AI close the gap?
Women wait years for a diagnosis. AI can shorten the wait.
Women's health covers every stage of a woman's life. Femtech is the set of technologies that aim to improve it. The life cycle runs from menstruation, through fertility, syndromes (signs that appear together) and diseases (with a known cause).
Women live longer than men, but with a lower quality of life, because medical research has paid unequal attention to the two sexes. Three areas need better research: diseases specific to women, pathologies more frequent in women, and fertility and maternity.
We believe this market is an exciting opportunity for venture investment. It is deep, untapped and full of AI use cases: detecting breast cancer, diagnosing endometriosis or PCOS earlier, and giving better care during pregnancy.
- 1
Diagnosis comes too late
Women-specific diseases are still well under-diagnosed.
- 2
Treatments are limited
Options for women-specific diseases remain thin.
- 3
A real opening for AI
AI-powered companies have a great opportunity to take on these challenges.
A large population, a small share of research
Symptoms have long been downplayed and research kept too weak. The numbers show the result.
Of worldwide medical research funding goes to women's diseases.
Women suffer from endometriosis, and it takes an average of 7 years to detect.
Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome are undiagnosed. It is the 1st cause of infertility in France.
Most deadly cancer in France, due to late diagnosis.
Of women suffer from post-partum depression.
Women have twice as many adverse drug reactions as men.
The cost is not only medical. Endometriosis costs €10,000 per patient per year, and €35,000 for patients with ovarian cancer. Earlier diagnosis is both a health case and an economic one.
From the margins of medicine to the agenda
Women's health stayed on the fringes of modern medicine for a long time. The turning points are recent.
- Late 1980s1
A report on trials
In the US, a report highlights the under-representation of women in clinical trials.
- Early 1990s2
Inclusion becomes mandatory
A few years later, the National Institutes of Health and the FDA make it mandatory to include women in publicly funded medical research.
- 2010s3
Prevention plans in France
The first prevention plans targeting cervical cancer, endometriosis or PCOS only begin in the 2010s.
- 20164
Women-specific care appears
The Clue app helps women through the medical journey, from diagnosis to personalised medicine and care.
- Today5
Funding and AI
A $106.7bn European funding plan for Femtech (2021-2027), a "Women's and Couples' Health" programme of €25m over 5 years, and an explosion of AI in medicine that is disrupting this vertical.
Under-representation in trials created the gap. Data, imaging and pattern recognition are now the tools to close it.
One life cycle, five moments of need
From menstruation to fertility, pregnancy and post-partum, each stage has its own gaps in diagnosis and care.
Menstruation
Pain is trivialised: 78% of women had their pain minimised. Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 women and takes 7 years to detect.
Fertility
15% of couples find it difficult to conceive. 7 in 10 women with PCOS, the 1st cause of infertility in France, are undiagnosed.
Pregnancy
35% of women feel "not well" during their pregnancy. Better anticipation reduces risks for mother and baby.
Post-partum
10 to 20% of mothers are affected by post-partum depression: profound sadness, intense fatigue, sleep disorders and anxiety.
Long-term health
Autoimmune diseases, heart disease and bone health. Prevention can be targeted, for example in osteoporosis.
Startups can enter at any stage, but the strongest ones connect stages: a woman followed from first symptoms to fertility to maternity builds data no single clinic holds.
Three areas, one pattern
Diseases specific to women, pathologies more common in women, and fertility to maternity. In each, AI acts on diagnosis, monitoring and treatment.
Digital innovation can reduce medical wandering and offer each patient rapid, personalised care. Diagnosis comes first, since a cancer detected early has a 5-year survival rate of 99%, against 26% when detected late.
73 European startups, three areas
Our study scope is European, AI-powered startups in oncology, chronic pain and maternity / fertility. Inclusion is for context and is not an endorsement.
73 startups, 40 in France. 28 were founded in 2020-2022, and the field is still young. We look for companies with a clear clinical or consumer buyer and a method that scales beyond one app.
Close the diagnosis gap, stage by stage.
Women's health has been under-researched, under-diagnosed and under-funded. That is changing, and AI is a lever at every step of care: diagnosis, monitoring and treatment.
The market is deep and untapped. We find it compelling where a startup brings earlier detection or personalised care, and a clear path to the clinicians and patients who need it.
Building in this space?
Talk to us- Ameli. Santé de la femme (key figures).
- Les Echos Solutions. Femtech : l'innovation au service de la santé des femmes.
- Bpifrance Le Hub. La French Tech au service de la santé des femmes.
- Lactalis Ingredients. La santé de la femme, un marché en expansion.
- Wavestone. Le marché de la Femtech en France.
- MACSF. IA et prévention santé : une révolution pour la médecine de demain.
- TV5MONDE. Quand l'intelligence artificielle se met au service de la santé des femmes.
- Science. Driven by pain: endometriosis, a scientist uncovering clues to its causes.
- World Health Organization. Women's health fact sheet.
- Alcimed. Comment l'IA révolutionne la santé des femmes ?
- Objectif Autonomie. Les principales maladies féminines et gynécologiques.
- Edimark, La Lettre du Gynécologue. L'intelligence artificielle en gynécologie-obstétrique (Dr B. Raccah-Tebeka, Pr P. Descamps).
- Institut Curie. De l'imagerie de pointe à l'IA : mieux comprendre le cancer du sein.
- Nature. d43747-024-00021-x.
- EURORDIS. Major survey reveals lengthy diagnostic delays for rare disease patients.
- Vidal. Pourquoi les femmes souffrent-elles davantage de maladies auto-immunes ?
- Académie nationale de médecine. Rapport sur l'infarctus du myocarde chez la femme (2025).
- Profession Sage-Femme. Nathalie Piquée : pour une IA périnatale.
- Presse-citron. Quand l'IA devient une alliée des femmes après l'accouchement.
- 20 minutes. Grossesse et intelligence artificielle.
- Institut Européen de Bioéthique. Fécondation in vitro automatisée : l'IA réinvente la procréation.
- IVI Fertilité. Taux de grossesse en PMA.
- Fréquence Médicale. Grossesse : des échographies plus fiables et plus rapides grâce à l'IA.
- Inserm. Enquête nationale périnatale, résultats de l'édition 2021.
- #NousToutes (2022), cited in the Ternel study on diseases specific to women.
- Ternel research. Database of 73 European femtech startups.