University of Leicester students develop app to support earlier endometriosis diagnosis

Two University of Leicester students have devised an app which could reduce the time it takes for patients to get a chronic health condition diagnosis.

Akanksha Sharma and Umaima Eftikhar Bondre have developed Ember, an app designed to help patients document their symptoms over time, identify potential patterns and communicate their experiences more clearly during consultations. The hope is this could contribute to earlier clinical recognition in the future.

Endometriosis is a chronic condition in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus. It can cause pelvic pain, painful periods, fatigue, gastrointestinal and urinary symptoms, fertility difficulties and significant disruption to everyday life.

The condition affects an estimated 190 million people, but despite its prevalence and impact, endometriosis can take years to be diagnosed. A March 2026 report from Endometriosis UK found the average wait from first seeing a GP about symptoms to diagnosis is nine years and four months.

Ember aims to speed up the diagnosis process, by allowing patients to input their symptoms in real time. This accurate catalogue of symptoms, which can vary widely, allows a clinician to see at a glance how a patient is affected over a longer period of time, which could speed up a route to diagnosis.

The idea for Ember came when the pair entered the Med Tech Innovation Programme, which brings medical, sciences and computer science students together to develop a digital solution addressing a real-world medical problem.

Akanksha, who is studying Medicine, said: “As a medical student, I have seen how much knowledge and momentum is lost between appointments due to length of time, clinicians changing from appointment to appointment, and so on. A patient knows their symptoms have changed, but not exactly when or how, and this knowledge can be forgotten when their appointment comes around. Ember aims to support clearer communication between patients and clinicians.”

Ember’s features include the ability to send patient information directly to a clinician and an AI function which retrieves relevant information from official NHS sources rather than generating its own medical advice.

Ember co-founder, Umaima, who is studying for a Masters in AI for Business Intelligence, explained: “When we started, we didn't want to build another app that asks someone to tick whether they are in pain today. We also decided early on that Ember would only retrieve NHS material that has been reviewed, rather than generating an answer pulled from various online sources. In a clinical context, a system that can invent a plausible sentence is a liability, not a feature.”

Umaima and Akanksha impressed Med Tech Innovation Programme judge, Dr Lynne Howells, who is Enterprise and Commercialisation Lead at the University’s Institute for Precision Health.

She said: “The Ember team articulated a compelling vision to improve the lives of women with endometriosis. Their background research, value proposition, prototype development and exceptional pitch gave them the edge over a very competitive field, and I am delighted that they are continuing to drive this project forward.”

The project is currently supported by the Growth Academy, overseen by the University’s Careers and Employability Service, which is helping the founders explore the next steps for Ember as a developing health technology venture.

The founders have a working prototype, and their next priority is to understand its usefulness, gather patient feedback, obtain clinical input and explore research collaborations so they can develop it responsibly.

Patients are being sought to test the app and share feedback, while the founders would also like to hear from clinicians, researchers, potential funders and industry partners to explore opportunities to collaborate.

Contact the team by emailing [email protected].