A few days ago, we covered Germany’s €12 million investment into non-hormonal contraception research - with two of the four funded consortia specifically targeting male contraception. It felt like a good moment to revisit the broader male contraception landscape and take a close look at what’s actually moving through clinical development right now.
But first: Why does a women’s health newsletter cover male contraception? Because the lack of male contraceptive options is, fundamentally, a women’s health issue. Right now, the menu for men is condoms or vasectomy. That’s it. That binary means women disproportionately bear the physical, emotional, and financial burden of preventing pregnancy - including the side effects of hormonal contraception, which over 20% of women cannot tolerate, sometimes with severe consequences. Nearly half of all pregnancies worldwide are unintended. Expanding male options doesn’t just give men more choices - it shifts a structural burden away from women.
The good news: After decades of “it’s five years away” promises, the pipeline is now more active than it has ever been. Multiple products are in human trials, a major biotech company is consolidating the field, and market research is definitively busting the myth that men won’t use contraception. Here’s where things stand.
The Pipeline: What’s Actually in (or Approaching) Trials
Three broad categories of approaches are being pursued: Physical barriers that block sperm in the vas deferens, non-hormonal drugs that target sperm production or function, and hormonal methods that suppress sperm production while maintaining normal testosterone levels.
Vas-Occlusive Devices: The “Reversible Vasectomy”
Think of these as the IUD equivalent for men - a physical barrier placed in the vas deferens (the tube sperm travel through) to block sperm transport. Two companies are advancing hydrogel-based approaches.
Contraline (ADAM) - Charlottesville, Virginia-based Contraline is developing ADAM, a water-soluble hydrogel implanted in the vas deferens in a ~10-minute outpatient procedure. It’s designed to last up to two years before naturally dissolving.
In April 2025, Contraline announced that participants in its first-in-human trial reached the 24-month mark with positive outcomes - two participants achieved azoospermia (zero sperm) from an average baseline of 81.5 million/mL, with no unexpected safety concerns. A Phase 2 study in Australia was approved to begin in Q3 2025, with US testing planned for 2026. But the bigger Contraline story is below.
NEXT Life Sciences (Plan A) - California-based NEXT acquired Vasalgel, a hydrogel technology with a long research track record, and is developing it as Plan A. Similar concept to ADAM but designed to last up to 10 years - a clinician injects a polymer into the vas deferens that filters out sperm. Reversal is done by dissolving the gel with a sodium bicarbonate solution.
Plan A entered Phase II clinical trials in October 2025. As a medical device rather than a pharmaceutical, it requires smaller trials, compressing both timeline and cost. Over 50,000 men have signed up expressing interest, and the company is planning a Series A in 2026 following an oversubscribed seed round.
One important difference between the two: ADAM is designed for a ~2-year lifespan (after which the hydrogel dissolves on its own), while Plan A targets up to 10 years and requires an active dissolution procedure for reversal. Different products for different user needs - mirroring the short-acting vs. long-acting split we see in female contraception.
Non-Hormonal Oral Approaches: The Holy Grail
The most exciting frontier in male contraception may be the search for a non-hormonal pill - a drug that stops sperm without touching testosterone or other hormones. Several approaches are in various stages of development.
YourChoice Therapeutics (YCT-529) - San Francisco-based YourChoice is developing a non-hormonal oral pill that blocks a vitamin A receptor (RAR-α) in the testes that’s essential for sperm production. Because this receptor is found almost exclusively in the testes, off-target side effects have been minimal - a persistent problem with earlier male contraceptive attempts.
Preclinical results showed 99% efficacy and full reversibility in mice. Phase 1a safety results published in July 2025 confirmed doses up to 180mg were well tolerated, with no impact on hormones, mood, or sexual desire. YourChoice is now running a Phase 1b/2a repeat-dose study with ~66 men, expected to complete by July 2026. This is the make-or-break trial - it’s evaluating whether the drug actually reduces sperm count in humans, not just safety. MCI has been a funding partner throughout.
NEXT Life Sciences (NLS-133) - In addition to its hydrogel device, NEXT Life Sciences revealed a second product in February 2026: NLS-133, a non-hormonal pill designed to provide 24 hours of contraceptive protection. It’s positioned as an on-demand or daily option - unlike YCT-529, which targets sperm production and would need consistent daily use, NLS-133 is designed for men who want to take a pill only when needed. A Phase II trial is underway evaluating its impact on semen parameters, though less public data is available compared to YCT-529.
Sacyl Pharmaceuticals / Weill Cornell (sAC Inhibitors) - Perhaps the most exciting early-stage concept. Researchers at Weill Cornell discovered that inhibiting soluble adenylyl cyclase (sAC) - an enzyme sperm need to become motile and capable of fertilisation - can temporarily render male mice infertile within 30 minutes of a single oral dose. Fertility returns the next day. In mice, it achieved 100% prevention of pregnancy during the window of effect. Researchers have co-founded Sacyl Pharmaceuticals to advance toward human trials, with MCI providing $650,000 in grants. Still preclinical, but the concept of a pill you take before sex that wears off by morning is genuinely new in contraception.
Eppin Pharma (EP055) - Eppin Pharma targets a protein called EPPIN on the sperm surface, binding to it and immobilising the sperm. In macaque studies, IV-administered EP055 provided a potential contraceptive window of 24-48 hours. Still preclinical - the company is working on developing an oral formulation for eventual Phase I trials, with over $800,000 in MCI grant funding since 2019.
The Hormonal Approach: NES/T Gel
While the non-hormonal approaches get most of the attention, the most clinically advanced male contraceptive in the entire pipeline is actually a hormonal product - and it now sits inside a company building a comprehensive male contraception platform.
NES/T Gel (now Contraline, originally Population Council/NICHD) - A once-daily topical gel combining Nestorone (a synthetic progestin) and testosterone. Applied to the shoulders, it suppresses sperm production while maintaining normal testosterone levels - addressing the mood, libido, and weight concerns that derailed earlier hormonal approaches. Over 750 men have been dosed across trials. In the Phase 2b study - 462 couples across 17 global sites - 86% of men reached contraceptive-level suppression by week 12.
In July 2025, Contraline exercised its exclusive license to take over the NES/T program from the Population Council. The company has begun actively planning what would be the first-ever Phase 3 trial of a hormonal male contraceptive - a genuinely historic milestone. If NES/T successfully completes Phase 3, it could become the first FDA-approved male contraceptive drug.
This move also makes Contraline the most significant company in the male contraception space. With both NES/T (a short-acting, daily-use hormonal method) and ADAM (a long-acting, non-hormonal implant), the company now has two complementary products addressing different user preferences - much like how female contraception offers both daily pills and long-acting devices. The fact that a single company is building what amounts to a male contraception platform is new and noteworthy.
The Demand Side: Do Men Actually Want This?
One of the most persistent objections to investing in male contraception has been the assumption that men simply wouldn’t use it. The data says otherwise.
A landmark international market research study - funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and MCI, published in Andrology in 2024 - surveyed over 18,000 men and 9,000 women across seven countries. The findings were clear: On average, 61% of men expressed interest in trying a novel male contraceptive within the first year of availability. Interest peaked at 76% in Nigeria and Bangladesh. In the US, the Dobbs decision shifted the needle - interest rose from 39% to 49% post-Dobbs, with about half of American men now saying they’d try a new method within a year of it becoming available. Female partners showed high levels of trust in their male partners’ willingness and ability to use contraception across all geographies.
The MCI study also found that introducing novel male contraceptive methods could increase modern contraceptive prevalence rates by 14% to 46% depending on the country - a substantial public health impact.
The anecdotal evidence aligns. STAT News reported in early February 2026 that men are actively lining up for clinical trials. YourChoice’s CSO Nadja Mannowetz noted they receive emails from men worldwide asking to participate. NEXT reports over 50,000 men registered for Plan A updates. An estimated 17 million American men are actively seeking new options. What’s been missing isn’t willingness - it’s options.
What to Watch Next
Key milestones over the next 12-18 months: Contraline’s NES/T Phase 3 trial announcement (would be a historic first for any male hormonal contraceptive); YCT-529 efficacy data expected mid-2026 (the first human sperm count data for this approach); NEXT Life Sciences’ Series A close and Plan A Phase II data; Contraline’s Phase 2 results from Australia for ADAM; and whether Sacyl Pharmaceuticals can advance its sAC inhibitor beyond mice toward human trials.
For more on the German research investment that sparked this piece, read our coverage here. For a deep dive into the science of male contraception and the targets being pursued, the Male Contraceptive Initiative maintains the most comprehensive resource available.
