Beta-HCG

What Does This Test Check?

Beta-HCG is the pregnancy hormone that appears in the blood soon after a fertilised egg implants. A blood version detects pregnancy earlier than a urine test.

Lola Health lists this as an add-on biomarker at £10, posted as a home sample with results in one to four working days. It cannot be bought on its own: you pick it while ordering one of Lola's main blood tests, so it suits someone who already knows which extra marker they want.

A positive result may indicate pregnancy, but levels alone do not tell how it is progressing. Ectopic pregnancies and early losses also change the number, so results need clinical context. Whatever the reading, an out-of-range result needs a doctor who can see the whole picture, so go through it with your GP before acting on it.