Summary:
Fellow Health showcased innovative research at AUA 2025, emphasizing the potential of mail-in semen testing to enhance prostate cancer diagnostics and post-vasectomy care.
Three Takeaways:
- Prostate Cancer Differentiation: Seminal fluid RNA and DNA biomarkers can non-invasively distinguish aggressive prostate cancer, potentially reducing unnecessary biopsies.
- Mail-In PVSA Viability: Mail-in post-vasectomy semen analysis remains stable for up to 10 days and performs comparably to in-clinic testing.
- Improved Access to Care: These solutions aim to eliminate barriers to men’s reproductive health services through patient-centric, remote testing options.
Fellow Health, a company focused on advancing male reproductive health through patient-centric testing solutions, recently presented four posters at the American Urological Association (AUA) 2025 meeting in Las Vegas. The studies highlight mail-in semen analysis as a potential post-PSA reflex test as well as an alternative to in-clinic post-vasectomy semen analysis (PVSA).
Differentiating Prostate Cancer
In a large multi-center study, researchers demonstrated that cell free RNA expression and DNA methylation biomarkers in seminal fluid can differentiate clinically significant prostate cancer (Grade Group 2+) from indolent cancer or no cancer. The RNA study identified a panel of transcripts that when combined with age and PSA resulted in an AUC of 0.827. Similarly, using a proprietary method for analyzing DNA methylation combined with AI, an AUC of 0.838 was obtained. Together, the findings point to a novel, non-invasive, mail-in test that could reduce unnecessary biopsies in men with elevated PSA.
“Too many men with elevated PSA undergo unnecessary prostate biopsies. In our study, even in the cohort that had undergone MRI prior to biopsy, almost 70% of men had either indolent cancer or no cancer,” says Kim Clark-Langone, PhD, senior vice president of Research and Development at Fellow Health. “These studies show that seminal fluid holds untapped diagnostic power. We see mail-in semen analysis as a novel post-PSA reflex test that can prevent unnecessary biopsies.”
The Real-World Performance of Mail-In PVSA
The second set of studies evaluated both the stability and real-world performance of mail-in PVSA. Researchers found that sperm samples remained stable over a 10-day period when stored in Fellow Health’s proprietary preservative, and the retest rate was just 4.2% higher than with fresh samples. These findings validate Fellow Health’s mail-in PVSA as a reliable, efficient alternative to in-clinic testing.
“Equity in men’s reproductive health starts with meeting people where they are,” says James F. Smith, MD, MS, chief medical officer and NYS laboratory director at Fellow Health. “Mail-in PVSA testing removes barriers like geography, time, and stigma. This is about more than convenience—it’s about ensuring every man has access to high-quality care, no matter his circumstances.”
Featured Image: Olivier Le Queinec | Dreamstime.com
