we all have
our own circadian rhythm
Circadian rhythms and thus the timing of molecular processes differ from person to person. Knowing your personal circadian rhythm and adjusting activities such as sleep, exercise, daylight or medicine intake according to your internal timing can improve health and reduce recovery or therapy time in patients.
TimeTeller
in health and performance
The human circadian clock regulates a number of cellular and molecular mechanisms and plays a vital role in maintaining human health. Around 50% of human genes are rhythmically expressed in at least one tissue.
well-functioning circadian rhythm
A well-functioning circadian clock, in synchrony with an individual’s behavioural habits, can improve general health and well-being. The circadian clock influences and times important functions in our bodies, such as: hormone release, eating habits and digestion, body temperature and sleep.
Disruption of circadian rhythm
Disruption of circadian rhythms is associated with diseases including sleep disorders, depression, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, obesity and cancer. Clock disruption may be caused by conflicting external (environmental) or internal (feeding/resting) signals that are not in synchrony with the personal circadian time.
Synchrony of circadian rhythms
It is important to keep molecular and physiological processes working properly. Sleep behaviour is one of the factors that might affect circadian rhythms.
The TimeTeller analysis produces a detailed description of your own circadian rhythm. lt also provides predictions of optimal timing for your daily activities.
TimeTeller
in cancer care
Timing matters — especially in cancer therapy. Adjusting the timing of medical treatment to match the circadian rhythm of each patient can significantly increase efficacy and reduce side effects, improving quality of life and lowering healthcare costs.
Yet, the circadian rhythm, our internal biological clock that regulates key cellular processes like cell division, metabolism, and DNA repair, is still largely ignored in cancer treatment and drug development.
Why? Because until now, there has been no practical, non-invasive tool to measure an individual's internal timing.
TimeTeller changes that.
TimeTeller is the first user-friendly, non-invasive diagnostic (IVD) that profiles a patient’s unique circadian rhythm, enabling clinicians to tailor treatment timing for maximum impact and minimal harm.
This approach, known as chronotherapy, has been tested in clinical trials with powerful results: up to 5× better tolerability and nearly 2× higher efficacy (compared to standard treatment schedules).
Moreover, 90-95% of cancer drugs fail to reach the market during development. Of those, 30% fail due to high or unmanageable toxicity, many of these failures could be avoided by timing treatment to the body’s internal clock.
TimeTeller brings chronotherapy into clinical reality, improving therapeutic outcomes across all major cancer treatment types.
Chronotherapy with TimeTeller: Smarter Timing for Better Outcomes
TimeTeller may be applied and is being tested across a wide range of cancer therapies, integrating the science of circadian biology into everyday clinical practice: Chemotherapy - Enhances drug effectiveness and reduces common side effects such as fatigue and nausea. Radiation Therapy - Improves tumor targeting and tissue protection by aligning treatment with peak DNA repair activity. Immunotherapy - Increases response rates by coordinating delivery with immune system activation cycles. Hormone Therapy - Boosts treatment sensitivity by syncing with natural hormonal fluctuations. Targeted and Precision Therapies - Minimizes off-target effects by exploiting circadian windows of cellular vulnerability. Combination Therapies - Combines different treatment types into a single, rhythm-optimized schedule for maximum therapeutic benefit.
Time matters. With TimeTeller, it’s finally time to use it.
We currently participate in clinical studies to validate and bring the benefits of our method to cancer patients in Germany and beyond. TimeTeller profiles your circadian clock using molecular analysis of saliva samples and computational modelling to provide toxicity profiles for optimization of treatment timing.
BMAL1: This gene is a core component of the circadian clock and acts as a positive regulator of gene expression. Many other core biological processes like the cell cycle, metabolism and immune system are regulated by BMAL1. Defects in this gene have been linked to infertility, problems with gluconeogenesis and lipogenesis, as well as altered sleep patterns. BMAL1 is relevant for both short and long term memory, as well as to inflammatory and stress responses, is associated with ageing, major depressive disorders, sleep deprivation and cancer. BMAL1 plays a role in physical activity due to its effect on muscle growth and action. It regulates the MyoD gene which is necessary for the maintenance of skeletal muscle phenotype and function.
PER2: This gene is a member of the Period family of genes. PER2 regulates several different biological processes like lipid metabolism and mammary gland development. PER2 plays a detrimental role in cell cycle and cell proliferation and its aberrant activity was found to be associated with cancer. Ageing leads to a change in expression of PER2 . Polymorphisms in this gene may increase the risk of developing certain cancers and have been linked to sleep disorders. Physical activity has been linked to the circadian clock and PER2 is up-regulated by strength training.
TimeTeller
– related publications
Malhan, Deeksha et al. “Circadian rhythm disruption by PARP inhibitors correlates with treatment toxicity in patients with ovarian cancer and is a predictor of side effects.” EbioMedicine. (2025).doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2025.105764.
Malhan, Deeksha, et al. "Gene Expression And Patient-Reported Outcomes Reveal Links Between Circadian Rhythm Disruption And PARP Inhibitor Toxicity In Ovarian Cancer Patients." International Journal of Gynecological Cancer 35.2 (2025). doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgc.2024.101460.
Hesse, Janina, et al. "Shaping the future of precision oncology: Integrating circadian medicine and mathematical models for personalized cancer treatment". Current Opinion in Systems Biology (2024). doi.org/10.1016/j.coisb.2024.100506.
Nelson, Nina, et al. "Molecular mechanisms of tumour development in glioblastoma: an emerging role for the circadian clock." NPJ Precis Oncol (2024). doi.org/10.1038/s41698-024-00530-z.
Ludwig, Marius, et al. "Molecular characterization of the circadian clock in paediatric leukaemia patients: a prospective study protocol." BMC pediatrics (2023). doi.org/10.1186/s12887-023-03921-6.
Hesse, Janina, et al. "An integrative mathematical model for timing treatment toxicity and Zeitgeber impact in colorectal cancer cells." npj Systems Biology and Applications (2023). doi.org/10.1038/s41540-023-00287-4.
Hesse, Janina, et al. "A mathematical model of the circadian clock and drug pharmacology to optimize irinotecan administration timing in colorectal cancer." Computational and Structural Biotechnology Journal (2021). doi.org/10.1016/j.csbj.2021.08.051.
Hesse, Janina, et al. "An optimal time for treatment—predicting circadian time by machine learning and mathematical modelling." Cancers (2020). doi.org/10.3390/cancers12113103.
Yalçin, Müge, et al. "Circadian clock dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease: mechanisms, consequences, and therapeutic strategy" npj Parkinsons Dis. (2025) . https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01009-9.
Yalçin, Müge, et al. "Molecular characterization of the circadian clock in patients with Parkinson’s disease–CLOCK4PD Study protocol" PLOS ONE (2024) . doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0305712.
Malhan, Deeksha, Relógio, Angela. "A matter of timing? The influence of circadian rhythms on cardiac physiology and disease" Eur Heart J. (2024) doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehad816.
Nelson, Nina et al., "Comprehensive integrative analysis of circadian rhythms in human saliva." npj Biological Timing and Sleep. (2025) doi.org/10.1038/s44323-025-00035-3.
Malhan, Deeksha, et al. "A prospective study to investigate circadian rhythms as health indicator in women’s aging." npj Women's Health (2025). doi.org/10.1038/s44294-025-00057-z.
Yalçin, Müge, Relógio, Angela. "Sex and age-dependent characterization of the circadian clock as a potential biomarker for physical performance: A prospective study protocol." Plos One (2024). doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293226.
Malhan, Deeksha, et al. "Circadian regulation in aging: Implications for spaceflight and life on earth." Aging Cell (2023). doi.org/10.1111/acel.13935.
Malhan, Deeksha, et al. "Skeletal muscle gene expression dysregulation in long-term spaceflights and aging is clock-dependent." npj Microgravity (2023). doi.org/10.1038/s41526-023-00273-4.
Dose, Benjamin, et al. "TimeTeller® for timing health: The potential of circadian medicine to improve performance, prevent disease and optimize treatment." Frontiers in Digital Health (2023). doi.org/10.3389/fdgth.2023.1157654.
Basti, Alireza, et al. "Diurnal variations in the expression of core-clock genes correlate with resting muscle properties and predict fluctuations in exercise performance across the day." BMJ open sport & exercise medicine (2021). doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2020-000876.