Hey

I first heard about the disparity in women's health funding some years back in Stacy Sims' seminal "Women Are Not Small Man" TED talk. Until then, I wasn't even aware that the vast majority of the drugs prescribed to women are not studied on women. Yes, you've read that right.

The next time this issue popped into my feed was late last year. On November 13, 2023, the US government signed the first-ever White House Initiative on Women's Health Research. This time, I dug around for numbers: 

• Only 10.8% of total health funding is spent on women’s health in US, according to the senior officials of National Institute Of Health.
   
• Women's health research receives no more than 8 percent of medical research funding in Canada, this is according to an Edmonton Journal article published in March of 2022.
   
• In Alberta, only 3.4 per cent of funding goes to women's health, citing the same article.

What exactly does this mean?

Women's Pain by Numbers:
 

• 70 percent of chronic pain sufferers are women according to US Centres For Disease Control and Prevention. Women are more likely to experience chronic pain conditions, yet funding for specialized programs targeting women's chronic pain management remains inadequate, hindering the development of effective interventions. Canadian data matches that of the US.
   
• Gender Disparities in Pain Research: Studies show that only 15% of pain research focuses on sex differences, indicating a significant gap in understanding and addressing women's unique experiences with chronic pain.
   
• Research Funding Disparities: Women's health research receives only about $5 per woman compared to $70 per man, indicating a substantial gap in research investment.
   
• Lack of Awareness in Women's Pain Conditions: A significant funding gap exists in raising awareness about specific pain conditions affecting women, such as endometriosis and fibromyalgia, which can lead to delayed diagnoses and inadequate treatment options.
   
• Delayed Diagnosis for Endometriosis: Endometriosis, a common cause of chronic pelvic pain in women, takes an average of 7-10 years to diagnose, reflecting the lack of attention and funding directed towards women's reproductive health issues.
   
• Underrepresentation in Clinical Trials: Women are often underrepresented in clinical trials, comprising only 39% of participants, which can impact the generalizability of research findings and hinder the development of effective chronic pain treatments.
   
• Inequality in Cancer Research Funding: Women's cancers receive significantly less research funding compared to men's cancers. Breast cancer, for instance, receives a fraction of the funding allocated to prostate cancer, despite its prevalence and impact on women's health.