Law firm launches report examining gaps in women’s health data  

A new report from law firm Mills and Reeve has examined how gaps in health data are holding back diagnosis, treatment, innovation and investment for women.

According to a panel of leading figures from across the world of health, femtech and law, women remain underrepresented in clinical research, treatment pathways and the AI-driven models increasingly used to inform clinical decision-making.

The panel called for all clinical trials, not just publicly funded studies, to be mandated to include a minimum proportion of women, and for researchers and commercial sponsors to routinely collect female-specific data such as menstrual cycle stage, menopause status and use of HRT.

Panellists highlighted that trial participants were asked about key details from weight to what they ate for breakfast, yet no one asked 51 per cent of the population whether they are having periods.

The discussion forms the fourth and final instalment of FemHealth Focus, a four-part series of reports on women's health commissioned by leading UK law firm Mills and Reeve.

The latest edition examines how gaps in health data are holding back diagnosis, treatment, innovation and investment.

Professor Dame Lesley Regan, Women's Health Ambassador for England, Chair of Wellbeing of Women, and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Imperial College London, took part in the roundtable.

She said: “There is a persistent myth that because women live longer than men, they are healthier. In fact, they live far longer in poor health – and, unlike men, the burden isn't concentrated at the end of life.

“It falls in the years between 18 and 55, when women are working, raising families and caring for older relatives.

“The cost isn't measured just in lives lost, but in economic and social participation. Ensuring women are properly represented in the data that shapes their care is not a niche concern, it is fundamental to the nation's health and prosperity."

Despite the introduction in 2024 of a mandatory requirement for female participation in studies funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, there are still no minimum requirements for the proportion of women included in clinical trials.

Only 5 per cent to 14 per cent of studies examine outcomes by sex, despite marked sex-based differences in response to the same drugs and treatment.

The data gap is also stifling innovation and investment. Just 2 per cent of venture capital healthcare funding in the US is allocated to women's health, while femtech accounts for less than 2 per cent of total health tech funding.

According to McKinsey, closing the gender health gap could unlock $1trn in global GDP by 2040.

The discussion also examined the ‘double edged sword’ of AI in women's health, with the resulting report calling for a legal duty on large online platforms to distinguish between sexually explicit material and legitimate health education.

This comes after research by advocacy body CensHERship found 95 per cent of women's health content creators had experienced some form of censorship on social media.

The panel additionally called for practical steps to boost women's participation in research, including flexible schedules, remote access, opportunities to join studies through routine care appointments at women's health hubs, and greater investment in community-led engagement to build trust among underrepresented groups.