The USZ startup FimmCyte and Gedeon Richter enter into a strategic research collaboration. This should accelerate the development of a new treatment option for endometriosis.
The Department of Reproductive Endocrinology at the USZ has been involved in the research and treatment of endometriosis for many years. The complex, chronic disease affects around one in ten women and is often associated with severe pain and fertility problems.
There is currently no therapy to completely cure endometriosis, so treatment focuses on containing the symptoms. In 2022, the start-up FimmCyte AG was founded in order to expand the treatment options, having emerged from research at the University Hospital Zurich and the University of Zurich. This represents an important step towards a new type of causal treatment.
New treatment tackles the causes
FimmCyte focuses on an innovative immunological therapy that aims to correct the dysregulation of the immune system, a key cause of inflammation and adhesions in endometriosis. The aim is not only to alleviate pain, but also to slow down the progression of the disease in the long term. In the long term, this could make a therapy available for the first time that directly addresses the disease mechanisms and enables patients to achieve a lasting improvement in their quality of life.
Faster help for endometriosis patients
In February 2026, FimmCyte announced a strategic research collaboration with Gedeon Richter Plc, a leading pharmaceutical company in the field of women’s health. In this way, the two companies want to advance and accelerate endometriosis research.
“As a clinical partner of FimmCyte, we are very pleased about this collaboration,” says Brigitte Leeners, Director of the Clinic for Reproductive Endocrinology at the USZ. “The innovative immunological therapy against endometriosis that we have developed will hopefully soon be available for use in the clinic and for countless endometriosis patients as an important extension of treatment options.”
FimmCyte
FimmCyte develops targeted immunotherapies for chronic fibroinflammatory diseases. The company was founded in 2022 as a start-up of the University of Zurich and University Hospital Zurich and the start-up is supported by the USZ Health Innovation Hub. The company is supported by Innosuisse, the UZH Life Sciences Fund and BaseLaunch, among others.
