There’s a word we rarely use when it comes to medical research and funding: sex. And it's costing women their health. We're talking about sex and sex as a biological variable (SABV)—the fundamental biological differences, like chromosomes and hormones, that exist between males and females at every cellular level.

For too long, medical research has been based on the male body. The result? We know less about conditions that primarily affect women; treatments are often less effective for women; and medications can have different side effects for female patients.

Your donation to the Society for Women’s Health Research will help us close this critical research gap.

When we talk about SABV, we can better understand how diseases show up in women compared to men:

Heart attack symptoms can appear differently in men than women – and women and their doctors may not know it. Three-quarters of women ages 60-79 have some form of cardiovascular disease.

Many autoimmune diseases are more prevalent in women, and 80% of autoimmune patients are women.

Women’s brains may age differently than men’s - and we still don’t know why or how. Women represent a disproportionate amount of Alzheimer’s disease patients and Alzheimer’s disease caregivers.

Learn more about women's health research here!

The science can’t remain half-researched and half-done. Women deserve the whole picture of their health.

Donate today and help us support women and advance research that fully considers sex differences, leading to better treatments and outcomes for women. Any amount you give helps us keep all our resources FREE and available to everyone—no paywalls, no barriers. Every dollar you donate directly supports our mission to advance women's health and promote research on sex differences.

Give now to help us make women's health mainstream!

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The Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR) is a national nonprofit and thought leader dedicated to advancing women’s health through science, policy, and education while promoting research on sex differences to optimize women’s health. Founded in 1990 by a group of physicians, medical researchers, and health advocates, SWHR is making women’s health mainstream by addressing unmet needs and research gaps in women’s health. Thanks to SWHR’s efforts, women are now routinely included in most major medical research studies and more scientists are considering sex as a biological variable in their research. Visit www.swhr.org for more information.

Society for Women's Health Research 2025 Giving Tuesday

Donate now to help us make women's health a research priority.