Our lead break-through prebiotic personal lubricant "PreBioGyn" is being developed to optimize genital health to reduce disruptions of the genital ecosystem that increase cervical cancer and genital infection risks, especially for people in low resource settings (LRS) with poor healthcare access. These people are those most at risk of developing cervical cancer, the 4th most frequent female cancer worldwide, and a U.S. demographic currently experiencing a “staggering rise” in death rates from this cancer.
Glyciome's prebiotic technology is supported by federal and regional funding awarded across multiple development phases. Our NCI Phase I STTR “Cervical Cancer Prevention Prebiotic Device” was completed in late 2023, and funded under NOT-CA-21-062 (Cancer Prevention, Diagnosis, and Treatment Technologies for Low- Resource Settings). The program is now advancing under an NCI Phase II STTR (NIH/NCI SBIR-STTR, 2025 to 2028; grant number 2 R44 CA254543-02A1). In 2022, Glyciome participated in I-Corps at NIH-NCI, an NIH entrepreneurship training program for active SBIR/STTR Phase I awardees (PAR-22-073), which informed the company's commercialization strategy. Glyciome has also received funding from the Health Sciences and Services Authority (HSSA) of Spokane County for development of this first-in-class prebiotic lubricant, which received its first issued US patent in 2024, with continued patent issuance and filing in 2025. This federally and regionally funded research is conducted in collaboration with leading genital microbiome experts across the United States and has resulted in peer-reviewed presentations and published abstracts(1-4).
1. Ellington J, Clifton GD, Ellington-Lawrence RD, Zamora De la Fuente V, Fichorova R. A Prebiotic Hydrogel to Prevent Cervical Cancer by Optimizing the Vaginal Ecology and Reducing Oncogenic Biological Risk Factors in Women Across Global Health Care Access. JCO Global Oncology 2022;8(Suppl_NCI1):38. DOI: 10.1200/GO.22.44000
2. Richorova RN, Lewis J, Clifton GD, Ellington J. Biocompatibility of a Novel Prebiotic Vaginal Gel for Treating the Underlying Conditions of Vaginal Dysbiosis and Inflammation That Facilitate Cervical Cancer Formation and Progression. JCO Global Oncology 2024;10(Suppl_NCI1):29. DOI: 10.1200/GO-24-27000
3. Clifton D, Fichorova R, Feldman S, Romaguera J, Godoy-Vitorino F, Fremlin J, Ellington-Lawrence R, Carey V, Pena N, Diaz J, Stokes E, Ellington J. Novel, Plastic-Free Vaginal Applicator for Reduction of Environmental and Systemic Plastic Chemical Exposures That Associate With Cancers. JCO Global Oncology 2024;10(Suppl_NCI1):135. DOI: 10.1200/GO-24-11100
4. Ellington J, Clifton D, Fremlin J, Stokes E, Shuster J. Regional College Women in the United States (U.S.) Report Low Health Literacy Regarding Basic Genital Biology and Cervical Cancer Risk Factors. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention 2023;32(6_Suppl):Abstract 71. Proceedings of the 11th Annual Symposium on Global Cancer Research, AACR, April 4 to 6, 2023, Philadelphia, PA. DOI: 10.1158/1538-7755.ASGCR23-Abstract-71