UK market research into women’s intimate health conditions in collaboration with B.Y.M.® Technologies

Introduction

B.Y.M.® Technologies are a team of scientists focused on creating microbiome-based solutions to support the body’s natural defences. P.Happi^® is a non-antibiotic serum created by B.Y.M.^® Technologies that uses a natural beneficial bacterium (Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus) to protect and help to re-establish a woman’s intimate microbiome (P.Happi, 2024).

What we did

As part of the Innovate UK Grant Project 10111789, Unity Insights conducted research into women’s intimate health conditions to provide market insights and identify opportunities for product development and expansion. Indeed, research into women’s health conditions remains significantly understudied, with less than 8% of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant budget allocated to this area (Debbink et al., 2025). Therefore, when conducting market research, the following approach was taken:

Based on priorities established in collaboration with B.Y.M.^® Technologies, Unity Insights utilised published literature, publicly available datasets and grey literature to uncover recent and relevant sources to the research questions. This was done using a funnelling approach, e.g. search terms were included to narrow the literature search and similar literature items were classified together, allowing ease of comparison. In many instances, the researchers were presented with fragmented findings, not all based on research conducted in the UK.

The data sources were reviewed, combined and extrapolated to the UK population, using realistic assumptions, to estimate the burden represented by women’s conditions in the UK. Some of the characteristics included in the modelling were breakdown of the burden of disease per age group, per geographical area (ICBs and PCNs), and by level of deprivation. For instance, NHS prescriptions data, primary care consultation reporting and number of laboratory tests were triangulated to model the number of sufferers per year for a common intimate health condition.

Unity Insights have extensive knowledge of publicly available datasets and navigating literature archives to identify suitable sources and to translate the research into costs and opportunities for patients, for the healthcare system and for the life science sector. This has provided B.Y.M.® Technologies with valuable insights to shape its UK go-to-market (GTM) strategy while also underscoring the need for further research in women’s health, enabling the company to share key findings with patients and partners.

References

Cavallo, F. M., Jordana, L., Friedrich, A. W., Glasner, C., & Van Dijl, J. M. (2021). Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus: A potential ‘living antibiotic’ to control bacterial pathogens. Critical Reviews in Microbiology, 47(5), 630–646. https://doi.org/10.1080/1040841X.2021.1908956

Debbink, M. P., Tuuli, M. G., Geller, A., Salganicoff, A. N., Burke, S. P., & Secord, A. A. (2025). A New Way Forward for Women’s Health Research at the National Institutes of Health: A Roadmap From the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Consensus Report. Obstetrics & Gynecology. https://doi.org/10.1097/AOG.0000000000005841

P.Happi. (2024). Microbiome protecting intimate serum. https://p-happi.com/