Dutch researchers launch pilot programme to collect menstrual blood for medical research

Menstrual blood may soon be as routinely collected as a blood sample, Dutch researchers say, as scientific interest in the substance surges. On Saturday, 13 June 2026, the Radboud University Medical Centre in Nijmegen opened a pilot programme inviting women to donate menstrual blood for research into biomarkers that could predict conditions such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome and even early-stage cancers. “We are treating menstrual blood not as waste but as a non-invasive, rich source of cellular and molecular data,” said Dr. Anouk van der Meer, head of the gynaecological biobank at Radboud UMC .

The initiative follows a wave of Dutch commentary arguing that centuries of medical neglect of the female body are finally giving way to systematic study. In a column published the same day, Trouw’s health editor warned that “the time has come for serious scientific interest in the female body,” citing the menstrual-blood programme as proof that taboos are receding . Until recently, menstrual blood was dismissed as mere waste; now it is being mined for RNA, DNA and protein signatures that change across the cycle. Radboud UMC’s biobank has already collected samples from 1,200 donors and aims to reach 5,000 by the end of 2026.

Public reaction has been swift. Social-media platforms are awash with testimonials from women who say they now view their periods as a monthly health report rather than a nuisance. “I used to flush it away,” said 34-year-old Amsterdam resident Lotte de Vries. “Now I collect it in a cup and send it to the lab—it feels empowering.” Clinicians, meanwhile, are eyeing the data for clues to autoimmune disorders and fertility decline. “We are only scratching the surface,” said Prof. Bart Fauser of Utrecht University, who is not involved in the project but collaborates on related research .

The shift coincides with broader European moves to destigmatise female biology. In Estonia, a viral Facebook debate about whether a 50-year-old woman’s desire for a child through IVF constitutes “love or selfishness” underscored lingering cultural tensions, yet even there participants acknowledged that open discussion is now possible in ways it was not a decade ago . Dutch researchers, for their part, are pressing for menstrual-blood screening to be reimbursed by national health insurers by 2028, arguing that early detection of gynaecological cancers could save €120 million annually in treatment costs.

For now, the Radboud pilot remains voluntary and unpaid, but organisers expect demand to grow as word spreads. “We are not asking women to do anything extraordinary,” said van der Meer. “We are simply asking them to treat their period as the health asset it has always been.”