How One Woman’s Bold Thinking is Transforming Healthcare with Menstrual Blood

Sara Naseri

 

Why Have We Ignored Menstrual Blood for So Long?

We have investigated nearly every bodily fluid in human biology—yet menstrual blood has been overlooked.

For centuries, it has been dismissed, ignored, and disregarded as anything that could have value in medical research.

But one woman saw beyond the stigma.

Dr. Sara Naseri, co-founder of Qvin, asked a groundbreaking question: Why aren’t we using menstrual blood as a diagnostic tool?

The answer to that question has changed the future of healthcare.

Shaping the Future: A Story of Resilience and Innovation

Sara’s  journey is one of resilience and reinvention. From an early age, she witnessed her parents start over in a new country, rebuilding their lives with determination and optimism.

They never saw challenges as barriers but as opportunities to grow. Their embrace of Denmark—a country ranked among the happiest in the world—instilled in her a deep belief in persistence, adaptability, and problem-solving.

These early lessons would later drive her to challenge the status quo in medicine.

Fearless Curiosity: Calling a Nobel Prize-Winning Scientist

Dr. Naseri has never been one to wait for permission to pursue knowledge. At one point in her early research, she became fascinated with a particular molecule with groundbreaking medical potential. Instead of simply reading about it, she did something bold:

She picked up the phone and called the scientist who won the Nobel Prize for discovering it.

That one fearless action, driven by intense curiosity and the belief that knowledge should be pursued directly, helped shape her journey into innovation and healthcare.

It was just one of many moments where she proved that when you see an opportunity, you take action.

The Birth of a Revolutionary Idea

Dr. Naseri’s passion for science started early. At just 17 years old, she developed a molecule with the potential to prevent and block skin cancer—a discovery that led her to start her first company.

But her biggest breakthrough came from a single, powerful realization:

Women bleed every month. Why hasn’t anyone studied that?

For decades, menstrual blood was disregarded. But what if it could be used as a powerful diagnostic tool—one that could replace costly, invasive blood tests?

This idea sparked what would become Qvin.

Facing Stigma and Setbacks

When she first proposed the idea of using menstrual blood for diagnostics, she was met with immediate resistance.

Not only did she have to prove to the scientific community that menstrual blood is blood, but even after research validated it, labs still refused to work with it.

They literally did not want menstrual blood in their machines.

Despite the rejection, she refused to let outdated stigmas stop her. She knew she was onto something revolutionary.

In 2014, she finally found a lab that was willing to work with menstrual blood, and that same year, she co-founded Qvin—the first-ever company to use menstrual blood for medical diagnostics.

Breaking Barriers: The Q-Pad

Fast forward to today: The Q-Pad has obtained FDA clearance.

This groundbreaking device has been proven to test for::

  • Blood sugar levels 
  • Fertility hormones
  • HR-HPV

And all of this can be done at home, non-invasively, using menstrual blood.

No needles. No expensive lab visits. Just accessible, affordable healthcare for people who menstruate.

Why This Matters

Healthcare costs are skyrocketing. Traditional blood testing methods are invasive, time-consuming, and expensive.

The Q-Pad changes that, offering a needle-free, affordable way to monitor health.

It has already been recognized as one of the 50 Great Innovations of the Year by Popular Science, and TIME Magazine named Qvin one of the Best Inventions of 2024.

But beyond the accolades, the real impact is this: Women now have a way to monitor their health using a resource that has been disregarded for centuries.

Mindset Used: Expansion Thinking and Resilience

Dr. Naseri embodies exponential thinking—the ability to see opportunities where others see limitations.

She did not just accept the status quo. She questioned it.

  • She saw value where others saw stigma.
  • She pursued answers where others ignored the questions.
  • She refused to be deterred by rejection.

Her resilient upbringing played a critical role in this. Her parents taught her that setbacks were not stop signs—they were stepping stones. That mindset allowed her to push forward where others gave up.

The Moment That Changed Everything

Her life-changing moment was the insight that menstrual blood could be used for diagnostics.

That moment, when paired with an exponential mindset—one that seeks solutions beyond conventional thinking—led to extraordinary results.

It was not just an idea—it was a call to action.

While not everyone can be Sara Naseri, her story is proof that key moments, when acted upon with the right mindset, can change the world. And that change starts with you.

So here is your moment—what opportunity do you see that no one else is acting on?

Learn about our mindset and moments framework here.

By Marjan Mohsenin,

Founder, Marjan Moments

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