Emerging biosensor technologies for the early diagnosis of female reproductive disorders: Advances, challenges, and clinical potential

Female reproductive disorders such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, and ovarian cancer remain major health concerns affecting fertility, hormonal balance, and quality of life. Despite advances in medical imaging, biomarker assays, and surgical methods, early and reliable diagnosis of these conditions remains difficult. Conventional approaches are often invasive, expensive, and lack sensitivity or specificity, particularly in early disease stages and in low-resource settings. Biosensor technologies are emerging as promising alternatives, offering rapid, non-invasive, and highly sensitive detection of disease-specific biomarkers. Electrochemical, optical, and nanomaterial-based platforms have shown potential for identifying hormonal, protein, genetic, and metabolic signatures linked to reproductive disorders. Recent innovations, such as electrolyte-gated field-effect transistors, NIR-II polymer dots, and nanomaterial-enhanced hormone sensors, have demonstrated their value in detecting conditions like ovarian cancer, PCOS, and endometriosis with greater precision. These technologies also support miniaturization, portability, and integration with wearable devices, enabling point-of-care diagnostics and continuous monitoring. Beyond their technical promise, biosensors also face challenges in translation to clinical practice. Issues related to reproducibility, stability, standardization, and regulatory approval must be addressed. Equally important are ethical and accessibility considerations, including data privacy, affordability, and equitable distribution across diverse healthcare settings. This review aims to critically evaluate emerging biosensor technologies for diagnosing female reproductive disorders, highlighting their current applications, design strategies, challenges, and future potential to improve early detection and transform reproductive healthcare.