THE BREAKTHROUGH | Trials of a revolutionary ‘switch-on/off’ contraceptive could begin in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand
Trials of a revolutionary ‘switch-on/off’ contraceptive could begin in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand as early as next year and the company is looking for men aged 25-65 to take part.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON THE BREAKTHROUGH
JULY 2024
TRIALS of a revolutionary ‘switch-on/off’ contraceptive could begin in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand as early as next year and the company is looking for men aged 25-65 to take part.
It aims to significantly reduce the rate of unintended pregnancies in the UK, which currently stands at nearly half of all pregnancies, with 36% resulting in abortion.
Globally, there are 121 million unintended pregnancies each year, with 61% ending in abortion.
READ MORE ON THE BREAKTHROUGH
NY1 | New Male Birth Control Options Are In The Works
Abortion remains a top issue this election cycle. The uncertainty surrounding reproductive rights since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade has led to a sharp increase in vasectomies and tubal ligations, and has also added fuel to the push to create male contraceptives. National Health Reporter Erin Billups looks at where things stand and at the timeline for getting these options to market.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON NY1 SPECTRUM NEWS
JULY 2024
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Full interview can be found on NY1 Spectrum News
BY ERIN BILLUPS - NATIONAL HEALTH REPORTER NATIONWIDE
Abortion remains a top issue this election cycle. The uncertainty surrounding reproductive rights since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade has led to a sharp increase in vasectomies and tubal ligations, and has also added fuel to the push to create male contraceptives. National Health Reporter Erin Billups looks at where things stand and at the timeline for getting these options to market.
READ MORE ON NY1 SPECTRUM NEWS
NPR Morning Edition | Arizona startup is working on making birth control for men a reality
A research lab in Flagstaff, Ariz., is trying to leverage a 1970s discovery into a safe and desirable alternative for men who want to prevent pregnancy.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON NPR MORNING EDITION
APRIL 2024
A research lab in Flagstaff, Ariz., is trying to leverage a 1970s discovery into a safe and desirable alternative for men who want to prevent pregnancy.
READ MORE ON NPR MORNING EDITION
CBS | Flagstaff Lab Working on Male Birth Control That Can Take Effect and Be Reversed in Minutes
For decades, birth control has become mainly a woman’s responsibility; however, honey-like liquid in vials from a small Flagstaff lab could hold the key to reversible and nonhormonal male birth control.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON ARIZONA FAMILY CBS AND MSN
APRIL 2024
The Arizona Supreme Court ruled this week the state can enforce an 1864 law that bans almost all abortions.
Now, eyes are on contraceptives, and some are in the works that would allow men to take control of birth control.
For decades, birth control has become mainly a woman’s responsibility; however, honey-like liquid in vials from a small Flagstaff lab could hold the key to reversible and nonhormonal male birth control.
Dr Rob Kellar is the chief science officer for NEXT Life Sciences’ Flagstaff lab. He and his team are developing and testing Plan A, male birth control. “Having the ability to develop new technology that gives not just men but partners, couples, some other options to consider in family planning is a really big deal,” Kellar said
Plan A would be a shot aiming to provide up to ten years of male birth control. It takes effect and can be reversed in just minutes. “We were looking to deliver an option that can be reliable but also reversible, and it’s on-demand reversible,” Kellar said.
READ MORE ON ARIZONA FAMILY CBS AND MSN
NBC | Flagstaff Startup is Working on a Medical Male Birth Control Method
The product, and ones like it, has been eagerly awaited for years. Discussion around it has become more prominent in the last few days since Wednesday’s Arizona Supreme Court decision that created a mostly-no-abortion environment in the state.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON 12 NEWS NBC
APRIL 2024
The product, and ones like it, has been eagerly awaited for years. Discussion around it has become more prominent in the last few days since Wednesday’s Arizona Supreme Court decision that created a mostly-no-abortion environment in the state.
“Just like in the kitchen you use a strainer to strain your spaghetti noodles, allow the water to flow through and leave behind the spaghetti noodles,” chief science officer Dr. Rob Kellar said. “That’s kind of the same analogy here.”
Kellar and his team have spent the last several years testing and developing Plan A, which, he says, is built upon decades of lab and clinical testing around the world.
READ MORE ON 12 NEWS NBC
NPR | Male birth control is the 'holy grail' for one Flagstaff company
Nearly half of all pregnancies worldwide are unplanned. And despite the many birth control options for women in the U.S., 1 in 5 say they aren’t using their ideal method. A startup biotech company in Flagstaff says the answer is birth control for men. And they’re working to make that idea a reality.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON NPR KNAU
MARCH 2024
Nearly half of all pregnancies worldwide are unplanned. And despite the many birth control options for women in the U.S., 1 in 5 say they aren’t using their ideal method. A startup biotech company in Flagstaff says the answer is birth control for men. And they’re working to make that idea a reality.
READ MORE ON NPR KNAU
Male Contraceptive Initiative Supports the Launch of Plan A™ Male Birth Control
NEXT Life Sciences is announcing its partnership with Male Contraceptive Initiative, the largest 501(c)(3) non-profit in the world dedicated to advancing male contraception. This partnership includes a grant of $400K to NEXT to support clinical trial research toward Plan A™, being developed as a long-acting, non-hormonal, reversible contraceptive method.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON AP News
FEBRUARY 2024
MCI grants $400K to support NEXT’s clinical trial research.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – NEXT Life Sciences, Inc. (NEXT) is announcing its partnership with Male Contraceptive Initiative (MCI), the largest 501(c)(3) non-profit in the world dedicated to advancing male contraception. This partnership includes a grant of $400K to NEXT to support clinical trial research toward Plan A™, being developed as a long-acting, non-hormonal, reversible contraceptive method. This grant follows a successful fundraising round led by Bolt.com founder Ryan Breslow and The Family, with participation from Transform VC and a combination of angel investors and early-stage venture funds.
“We’re thrilled and extremely grateful to MCI for their commitment to excellence and innovation in the male contraceptive space,” said NEXT Life Sciences Founder and CEO L.R. Fox. “NEXT is dedicated to developing a contraceptive solution that will finally meet men’s need for long-term effectiveness, convenient reversibility, and ease of access. We want to improve the quality of life for men and couples by giving men equitable access to participate in family planning with an option like Plan A™. This investment from MCI will help accelerate our progress towards those goals.”
“NEXT Life Sciences represents an exciting partnership opportunity. They have been integral at advancing the non-hormonal male contraceptive field in an effort to provide reproductive equity to all people, and particularly men who, despite all the incredible efforts to date, still only have two methods of birth control: condoms and vasectomy,” said MCI Executive Director Heather Vahdat, MPH. “The number of men and their partners expressing the desire for male contraceptive options continues to increase, and part of MCI’s dedication to accelerating product development includes thinking proactively about how to ensure a variety of delivery options. We are pleased to be able to get behind the talent and energy of NEXT Life Sciences in order to achieve a real vision for a shared contraceptive future.”
“We have been excited about the progress of the Plan A™ technology since 2019, when we provided an initial grant to advance the work of Vasalgel®, the hydrogel in Plan A™. Given the success of their science to date, we are pleased to expand our collaboration as NEXT Life Sciences represents an exciting device-based, non-hormonal male contraceptive method.” continued MCI Chief Research Officer Logan Nickels, PhD. “It is critically important that we develop, in parallel, a robust and diverse mix of contraceptive products for men in order to ensure that individual’s unique needs and interests are meaningfully addressed by the next generation of male contraception. NEXT Life Sciences and their product Plan A™ represent an exciting opportunity to do just this by providing a device-based, long-acting, and reversible contraceptive for male users.”
“Plan A™ will be a great addition to the family planning options involving men and couples looking to prevent pregnancy,” said Dr. Aaron Tabor, Chief Technology Officer, NEXT Life Sciences. “With the advances we’ve made in testing and confirming the long-term durability of Plan A™, we’re thrilled to have this support from MCI to bring this technology to the world.”
“The landscape for contraception is rapidly changing, and as more men get involved in family planning, they need more options,” said Dr. Robert Kellar, Chief Science Officer at NEXT Life Sciences. “Our team at NEXT Life Sciences is extremely excited to get started on the funded work which is designed to help accelerate our technology to commercialization.”
Plan A™ is being developed by NEXT Life Sciences as a male contraceptive that would be administered during a quick outpatient procedure in which a biocompatible hydrogel, Vasalgel®, is placed within the vas deferens (the tubes that carry sperm), creating a flexible filter that prevents the flow of sperm. Plan A™ is designed to create up to 10 years of pregnancy prevention with the allowance for reversibility at any time through a second procedure to dissolve the gel.
Following the acquisition of the worldwide license to Vasalgel® in 2022 from the Parsemus Foundation, NEXT Life Sciences has pushed the technology forward, optimizing it into Plan A™, to bring it through FDA marketing authorization and finally to market. Backed by renowned clinicians and researchers within the contraceptive and hydrogel communities, the company has plans to start clinical trials for Plan A™ in 2024, followed by submission to the FDA for marketing authorization.
About NEXT Life Sciences: NEXT Life Sciences, Inc. (NEXT) is a medical device company striving to transform lives through the development of its lead program, Plan A™, designed to provide a non-hormonal, long-lasting, and reversible contraceptive solution for men. NEXT’s executive management team and board members have a proven track record of leadership across early-stage research, product development, and global commercialization, having served in leadership roles at successful medical device and contraceptive companies that developed and launched products that achieved iconic status. For more information, visit www.nextlifesciences.org and www.planaformen.com.
About Male Contraceptive Initiative: Male Contraceptive Initiative’s vision is “Reproduction Autonomy for All”, and works to accomplish this by bringing new male contraceptives to market. The non-profit accomplishes this through direct funding, technical support, research, and advocacy. They believe that couples deserve options and that they offer the biggest potential impact by focusing on male contraceptives. It’s time men are given more opportunities to contribute toward family planning. Please visit their website for more information: www.malecontraceptive.org.
READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE ON AP News
The 'IUD' for men: Could Plan A be the future of male contraception?
Being dubbed the ‘IUD’ for men (coil if you’re a Brit), Plan A™ is aiming to bring the first non-hormonal, long-lasting and reversible male contraception to the market. If you’re someone who’s struggled with the female birth control options, then this may be music to your ears. You may also have questions.
We spoke to L.R. Fox, the CEO and Founder of Next Life Sciences (the company behind Plan A™) about all things male birth control.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON The News Movement
FEBRUARY 2024
Being dubbed the ‘IUD’ for men (coil if you’re a Brit), Plan A™ is aiming to bring the first non-hormonal, long-lasting and reversible male contraception to the market. If you’re someone who’s struggled with the female birth control options, then this may be music to your ears. You may also have questions.
We spoke to L.R. Fox, the CEO and Founder of Next Life Sciences (the company behind Plan A™) about all things male birth control. We asked him some of the big questions - How does it work? Will men take it? Is there an appetite for it? What does this mean for women’s birth control options? Will there be side effects?
Watch our chat with Fox to find out everything you want to know, from one of the people trying to reach a new frontier in reproductive health.
WATCH MORE ON The News Movement
NEXT Life Sciences Announces Successful Clinical Evaluation of the Delivery Method for Plan A™ Contraception for Men
NEXT Life Sciences has most recently concluded a successful clinical evaluation of its new proprietary delivery method. Based on the results of this evaluation, it is expected that Plan A™ Contraception’s novel delivery method will be easier than historical intraluminal vas deferens delivery methods.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON AP News
FEBRUARY 2024
Novel method represents an evolution for male contraceptive research.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, February 12, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- NEXT Life Sciences, the company designing a non-hormonal, long-lasting, and reversible male birth control known as Plan A™, has most recently concluded a successful clinical evaluation of its new proprietary delivery method. Based on the results of this evaluation, it is expected that Plan A™ Contraception’s novel delivery method will be easier than historical intraluminal vas deferens delivery methods. Using this method, there was a positive confirmation of successful intraluminal access to the vas lumen (the tube that carries sperm) in 23/24 (96%) vas deferens, compared with only 16/24 (67%) vas deferens accessed using traditional methods that deploy larger devices and needle-based access devices.
The entire Plan A™ design in development will include a non-hormonal, reversible hydrogel solution, called Vasalgel®, which is inserted into the vas deferens to block the flow of sperm. The new proprietary delivery method was evaluated by Michel Labrecque, MD PhD, a member of NEXT’s Medical Advisory Board, and globally-renowned medical doctor, professor, clinical researcher, and pioneer in the field of no-scalpel vasectomies.
Dr. Labrecque conducted the clinical evaluation of this novel Plan A™ delivery method among 24 male volunteers at two Vasectomie Québec clinical sites in Quebec City. Dr. Labrecque has performed over 40,000 vasectomies and is an expert in the research and background of male contraceptive methods, including a previous iteration of the Vasalgel® hydrogel technology in India, known as RISUG. NEXT Life Sciences with Dr. Labrecque is developing this minimally invasive procedure in order to allow a provider to confirm with greater accuracy that the Vasalgel® is properly positioned within the vas deferens to act as a contraceptive.
After a safe and successful completion of the evaluation, Dr. Labrecque concluded, “The delivery method with the Plan A™ system is designed to be significantly safer than previous vas lumen access and hydrogel delivery methods.” He continued, “In both the formulation of its hydrogel and its unique delivery method, Plan A™ represents the evolution of a long line of research and advances in male contraceptive research.”
“Plan A™ expands upon decades of research and clinical experience with hydrogel-based contraception,” explained L.R. Fox, CEO of NEXT Life Sciences. “We’re pioneering a new delivery method because we want providers to have ease and comfort when providing Plan A™ to patients—which will be necessary to make this technology available at scale once it is approved.”
Today’s announcement of a successful clinical evaluation of Plan A™ Contraception’s delivery method in 24 men comes shortly after NEXT Life Sciences’ announcement of the conclusion of an oversubscribed successful funding round and its plans to initiate clinical trials of the Plan A™ system in its entirety (both the hydrogel and the delivery method) in 2024.
About NEXT Life Sciences: NEXT Life Sciences, Inc. (NEXT) is a medical device company striving to transform lives through the development of its lead program, Plan A™, designed to provide a non-hormonal, long-lasting, and reversible contraceptive solution for men. NEXT’s executive management team and board members have a proven track record of leadership across early-stage research, product development, and global commercialization, having served in leadership roles at successful medical device and contraceptive companies that developed and launched products that achieved iconic status. For more information, visit https://www.nextlifesciences.org/ and https://www.planaformen.com/.
READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE ON AP News
StartUp Health Insights: NEXT Life Sciences Secures $2.5M for ‘Plan A’ Male Birth Control
“With Plan A™, our goal is to change lives by giving men the ability to participate equally in family planning, so that couples have a more equitable relationship and the tools needed to be intentional about their futures,” said Health Transformer L.R. Fox, CEO & Founder of NEXT Life Sciences.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON StartUp Health
JANUARY 2024
NEXT Life Sciences Secures $2.5M - The round, which brought total seed funding to date to $4M, was led by Ryan Breslow’s The Family, with participation from StartUp Health, Transform VC, Brock Pierce, Pay It Forward Venture Capital, Particular Ventures, Keno Peer, Unpopular Ventures, and Joy Fund.
READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE ON StartUp Health
Male birth control maker raises $2.5 million to develop “Plan A”
Next Life Sciences has raised $2.5 million to develop a male contraceptive product called Plan A, which could become a nonsurgical alternative to vasectomies.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON Axios
JANUARY 2024
Next Life Sciences has raised $2.5 million to develop a male contraceptive product called Plan A, which could become a nonsurgical alternative to vasectomies.
Why it matters: This could help balance family-planning responsibilities that fall disproportionately on women.
Zoom in: Plan A is being pitched as a medical device instead of as a drug, which Next Life Sciences CEO L.R. Fox says should reduce the time and expense of clinical trials that begin later this year.
READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE ON Axios
Male contraceptive under development blocks sperm with quick injection, easily reversible
Vasectomies and condoms have traditionally been the only ways men can use contraception, but a Los Angeles-based health startup wants to change that.
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON New York Post
JANUARY 2024
Vasectomies and condoms have traditionally been the only ways men can use contraception, but a Los Angeles-based health startup wants to change that.
NEXT Life Sciences is pioneering Plan A, a procedure in which men pay a 10-minute visit to a doctor to receive an injection of a hydrogel into the vas deferens — the 30-centimeter tube that transports sperm.
Once injected, the hydrogel morphs into a semi-solid, thick, and sticky substance that filters sperm out of semen during ejaculation — maintaining its efficacy for 10 years, according to the company.
“It’s all of the juice and none of the seed,” L.R. Fox, the 29-year-old founder and CEO of NEXT Life Sciences, told The Post.