We want to understand how the vaginal microbiome connects to lifestyle and health factors like age, menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and medical conditions.

We also want to study how the vaginal microbiome changes over time and see whether it is similar between family members, like mothers, daughters, and grandmothers.

Any female over 18 currently residing in the U.S. who is willing to collect a swab of vaginal microbiome as part of the study is eligible to participate! No matter your race, ethnicity, health status, or medical condition, you are invited to be part of The Bess Project.

We are part of a global-sisterhood called the “ISALA Sisters Network”. The Bess Project is a sister project to the original ISALA study, who successfully recruited over 6,000 participants to self-swab their vaginal microbiota in Belgium.

The ISALA Sister Network includes many other countries/regions, and each sister project is named after a prominent female scientist or physician from their respective communities. This project is named after Elizabeth Blackwell (whose nickname was Bess), the first woman to earn a medical degree in the U.S.

• Your participation involves three steps: signing a consent form, completing a survey, and collecting a vaginal sample. Everything can be done at home. Joining is completely voluntary, and you can stop at any time. All your responses are private and confidential.

  Part 1: Survey

  After you sign our consent form online through DocuSign, we will email you a copy of the signed form. You will also get a unique Study ID that does not include any personal information, along with a link to our online survey on Qualtrics. The survey takes about 30 minutes to complete.

  Once you finish the survey, we will email you to confirm we received your responses. At that time, we will also let you know that your sampling kit has been mailed to the address you provided.

  Part 2: Sample

  You will collect a vaginal sample yourself at home or any location you feel comfortable. The sampling kit includes everything you need. After collecting your sample, you simply send it back using the pre-paid return envelope.

  Once we receive your sample, we will email you to confirm it arrived safely. You will also have the option to provide additional samples over time (for example, every month, every three months, or during pregnancy). After we have sequenced enough samples, you can request a free personalized report showing your vaginal microbiome for each sample you contributed.

We do not offer payment for participation in this study.

There is no cost for you to participate in our research study.