Participants sought for studies Do you want to contribute to women’s health to fight against cancer?
We are a group of researchers who are interested in studying how the onset of cancer relates to the microbiome and the immune system, with a focus on vaginal microbiome. We have collected longitudinal microbiome samples from cervical cancer patients with questionnaires. We are now looking for healthy controls who want to participate in the study by submitting two vaginal swabs (self-swab) and filling out a questionnaire.
Aim of study
We invite you to participate in our study and thereby help us collect samples for analysis of vaginal microbiome and the immune system. Your participation will facilitate our work to find new biomarkers that can then be used as diagnostic and/or therapeutic tools in treatment.
Sample collection
• 2 vaginal swabs
• 1 questionnaire (4 pages, approximate time of completion is 10 minutes), English and Swedish are available
• 1 consent form
Please note: The self-sampling is performed at Karolinska Institutet. Vaginal swabs must be performed within 30 minutes of drop-off.
Criterias
To participate in the study, you need to meet following criteria:
• Age: 18-45
• Not menstruating at the time of of self swab
• Generally healthy
• No known current gynecological symptoms (such as HPV, fungal infections, bacterial vaginosis, urinary tract infection)
• Have not taken antibiotics in the past 3 months
• Currently not pregnant
Contact details
If you are interested in participating or have questions about participation, please contact Katarína Bankóová at katarina.bankoova@stud.ki.se.
For information about the study, please contact Juan Du by email at juan.du@ki.se.
Responsible researcher: Professor Juan Du, Karolinska Institutet, Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology.
As compensation, participants will receive a small gift.
Processing of personal data
Your personal data is processed for the purposes of this study in accordance with GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). The legal entity responsible for processing of your personal data is Karolinska Institutet. The Data Protection Officer can be reached at dataskyddsombud@ki.se. The data will be analyzed on a group level, handled confidentially and it will be stored in a secure database at Karolinska Institutet. You can terminate your participation in the study at any time.