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European Institute of Womens Health,clg

EIWH

Our aim: to promote the advancement of education and public awareness of women's and family health issues throughout Europe by conducting evidence-based research.EIWH Objectives: To promote health throughout the lifespan in women, and their family.To ensure quality and equity in health policy, research treatment and care.To draw policymakers attention to the obstacles that women in minority and socio-economic disadvantaged groups face in obtaining a desirable health status.To promote gender-specific bio-medical and socio-economic research that addresses sex(biological and physiological) and gender-based differences to ensure access to quality treatment and care for women.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Tilly Metz (Member of the European Parliament) and DSW (Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevoelkerung)

9 Sept 2025 · MEPs for Women's Health

Response to EU cardiovascular health plan

3 Sept 2025

Traditionally regarded as a male disease (CVD) is the number one killer of women worldwide. It also is a major cause of serious illness and disability, costly to healthcare systems and destroying womens quality of life. In the EU, CVD remains the top cause of death for women in each of the twenty-seven EU countries. Only during the last decades has awareness been rising how CVD affects women differently from men, alerting women to their risk. Death from CVD accounted for 43% in women and 36% in men in the EU. To complicate matters, the symptoms of CVD in women can be different from those commonly observed in men, which may add to the under-recognition of heart disease in women. Womens symptoms of a heart attack may be chest pain, but this can be less dramatic than in men. Instead there may be an uncomfortable pressure in the centre of the chest which can last a few minutes, or come and go; pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach; shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort; or breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea/vomiting, lightheadedness or a general feeling of weakness. Women and doctors must be educated and trained to recognise the different symptoms. Women are slower to react when these symptoms strike, often losing valuable time in seeking emergency treatment. Strong communication messages are needed to address women themselves, explaining their risk factors and symptoms with the hope that such knowledge helps women to recognise their risk of heart disease and empowers them to change to a healthier lifestyle. It is estimated that 80% of CVD is due to lifestyle factors; therefore there is great opportunity for prevention. Various risk factors for CVD manifest differently in women. Due to lack of awareness, women are less likely to understand and identify their risk factors, which makes CVD more difficult to prevent and manage. Age is an important factor for women who generally develop CVD ten years later than men. During mid-life, more women than men develop hypertension and their total cholesterol level also increases. Both hypertension and elevated cholesterol are serious risk factors. Added to this is the increase of obesity in women over the age 45, which is characterised by body fat moving from around the hips up to the waist. Although the age risk cannot be changed, other factors are amenable to prevention. During childbearing years, women seem to be protected from CVD by their hormones. After menopause a reduction in hormone levels is interlinked with a web of other risk factors such as central obesity, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, history of smoking and metabolic syndrome. Heart disease is the leading cause of death during pregnancy. Fortunately, this is rare, affecting only an estimated 0.9% of pregnant women. Findings from this registry reveal that pregnant women with a pre-existing heart dinase have a 100-fold increased risk of death compared to pregnant women without heart disease. However to confound matters, many symptoms of heart disease - such as shortness of breath, fatigue and heartburn - are similar to general pregnancy symptoms, making heart disease during pregnancy difficult to recognise and diagnose. Women suffering from a congenital heart disease need to be careful as regards pregnancy and birth control options as both can increase heart risk in vulnerable populations. Smoking is more likely to cause CVD in women than in men and research suggests that mortality in smoking women is higher. Historically women have been under-represented in CVD clinical trials due to the mistaken belief that this disease mostly affects men. General clinical trial practice that considers one size-fits-all and fails to stratify trials results according to gender and age needs to be revised to include a robust risk/benefit analysis for both sexes. Women with CVD have had to face the double discrimination of sex and age.
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Response to Gender Equality Strategy 2026-2030

8 Jul 2025

Womens health must be a central component of the EU Gender Equality Strategy. A comprehensive life-course approach to womens health is essential to ensuring gender equality in both opportunity and outcome. This requires mainstreaming sex and gender in health research, policy, prevention, care delivery, data systems, and innovation from adolescence through old age. Rationale Women live longer than men, but spend more years in poor health. Despite this, EU policy frameworks and investments still insufficiently account for sex and gender differences in disease risks, treatment efficacy, and social determinants. As Europes population ages, gender-responsive health systems will be essential to meet the needs of growing cohorts of older women. The gender equality agenda must evolve accordingly moving from parity in access to equity in outcomes. 2. Key Recommendations Implement the recommendation on health in the Roadmap for Womens Rights A. Adopt a Life-Course Approach to Womens Health Expand the strategy beyond reproductive health to include non-communicable diseases (NCDs), mental health, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune conditions, osteoporosis, and dementia all of which disproportionately affect women, particularly in midlife and older age. Integrate gender-sensitive measures into the EU4Health Programme, Europes Beating Cancer Plan, and Horizon Europe missions on health and ageing. B. Close the Research Gaps in Womens Health Mandate the inclusion of sex- and gender-based analysis in all EU-funded health research. Strengthen the inclusion of women right from the start in clinical trials from the design of research protocols through the trial process. Prioritise funding for under-researched conditions affecting women, including endometriosis, menopause, long COVID, chronic pain, and mental health conditions with higher prevalence in women. C. Improve Collection and Use of Disaggregated Data Require EU Member States to collect, report, and use sex-, gender-, and age-disaggregated data in all health datasets, registries, and health technology assessments (HTAs). Build EU-wide indicators and benchmarks for womens health outcomes across the life course. D. Address Gender Gaps in Health Outcomes Embed gender mainstreaming in all EU health policies, including prevention, digital health, and AI in medicine. Design gender-sensitive care pathways for conditions like diabetes, depression, and cancer to improve early detection and personalised care. Invest in health literacy, access to care, and digital inclusion of older women, migrant women, and underserved populations. E. Support the Health and Wellbeing of Women in the Care Economy Address the dual role of women as both recipients and providers of care. Strengthen occupational health protections for the female-dominated health and long-term care workforce. Ensure equal pay, pension rights, and career progression in care-sector jobs, and support healthy ageing and mental wellbeing among carers. The next EU strategic cycle should deliver a comprehensive EU Strategy for Womens Health aligning research, policy, and innovation to achieve tangible improvements in women's health and wellbeing at every life stage. To deliver on the EUs commitment to leave no one behind, the Gender Equality Strategy must prioritise womens health across the life course.
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Meeting with Tilly Metz (Member of the European Parliament)

8 Jul 2025 · MEPs for Women's Health

Meeting with Sirpa Pietikäinen (Member of the European Parliament)

17 Mar 2025 · Women's health

Meeting with Tilly Metz (Member of the European Parliament)

24 Oct 2024 · Women's health

Meeting with Maria Walsh (Member of the European Parliament)

9 Sept 2024 · European Parliament Women's Health Interest Group

Meeting with Tilly Metz (Member of the European Parliament)

9 Feb 2024 · Women's Health Interest Group

Response to Revision of Food Information to Consumers for what concerns labelling rules on alcoholic beverages

22 Jul 2021

The European Institute of Women’s Health welcomes the EU Commission proposed revision on the provision of food information to consumers, for what concerns labelling rules on alcoholic beverages information provided to citizens. . Alcohol consumption is related to over 60 diseases and health issues. Women do not need to consume as much alcohol as men to run the same risk for certain diseases. High levels of alcohol consumption is linked to an elevated risk of conditions like acute pancreatitis, cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, liver cancer, liver cirrhosis, and various mouth and throat cancers. A man who drinks six standard drinks daily is 13 times more likely to develop cirrhosis of the liver compared to a non-drinker; while a woman who drinks four standard drinks daily has the same cirrhosis risk as a man who drank six. Heavy drinking also puts women at an elevated risk of injuries and death from car accidents, falls, self-harm, and unsafe sex. The EU Beating Cancer Plan has highlighted the risk of drinking.The relationship between alcohol and cancer is strong; for example, about 20% of breast cancer deaths in the EU are attributable to alcohol. However, many women are unaware of this link. One standard alcoholic drink taken daily increases the risk of developing breast cancer by 9%; while 3-6 drinks daily, raises it by as much as 41%. Furthermore, estimates show that the risk of breast cancer might increase by as much as 10% for each additional drink women drink daily. Research on drinking among older people remains limited. Yet, older women are particularly vulnerable to alcohol problems as they are more likely than men to outlive their partners, experience other losses, become frail, and/or be financially dependent. These circumstances can result in loneliness and depression. The interaction between alcoholism and depression in older women remains a neglected area that urgently needs to be studied further. The EU Alcohol Strategy prioritises the protection of young people and unborn children from harm. Drinking alcohol during pregnancy is the leading known cause of birth defects and child developmental disorders. These defects are likely underreported, so the true extent of alcohol-related harm during pregnancy is as yet unknown. Labelling,containing information on ingredients and warnings on ill affects will support and potentially reduce the risk of excessive alcohol consumption for non-communicable diseases such as cancer and obesity, reducing the impact on families.
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Response to Fitness check of the EU legislation on violence against women and domestic violence

18 Aug 2020

The Council of Europe estimates that in Europe 20-25% of women suffer from physical violence and more than 10% suffer from sexual violence at least once in their adult lives. A third of all women and girls experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime, half of women killed worldwide were killed by their partners or family, and violence perpetrated against women is as common a cause of death and incapacity for those of reproductive age, as cancer, and a greater cause of ill health than road accidents and malaria combined. Violence against women affects women of all circumstances. However, specific groups of women are particularly vulnerable including disabled women, female asylum seekers, migrant and ethnic minority women, prostitutes, refugees, trafficked women and women living in institutions. Domestic violence is the most common form of violence against women in the EU; alcohol is the most common cause of this violence. Domestic violence results in immediate physical and mental health side effects as well as long-term effects ranging from injury to death. Sexual violence against women is associated with sexually transmitted infections; physical health issues including back and abdominal pain, gastrointestinal disorder, and irritable bowel syndrome; gynaecological problems; and mental health issues such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder that can, in extreme cases lead to suicide. It is estimated in Europe that unwanted pregnancy occurs in one in six rapes among women aged 12-45 years. The World Health Organisation found that the healthcare sector is vital to combatting violence against women by identifying abuse early, providing victims with appropriate treatment and referring women to needed care. Women must feel safe when accessing these services where they are treated respectfully, without stigma, as abused women are often reluctant to seek the needed care. We encourage the strengthening of the rights, support and protection of crime victims, especially women and children. The EIWH also praises European efforts to eliminate female genital mutilation through public consultations and through awareness raising and grass roots activities at national and transnational levels. The EIWH supports the Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025, which presents the key actions in preventing and combatting violence against women and domestic violence. Data collection on gender violence should occur on a regular basis. Member States must ensure a robust set of data to inform Government policy on how to tackle violence against women. In order to inform policy makers and support the design and implementation of effective policies and programmes there is an urgent need for disaggregated relevant statistical data related to sexual violence (including by age,sex,socioeconomic and education status,,ethnic background and geographic location). Article 11 of the Istanbul Convention recommends collection of administrative data, to conduct research and to collect survey data. The EIWH welcomes the continued efforts by the European Community to end gender-based violence. Only concerted efforts by all stakeholders working together to make combatting violence against women a priority and to garner the political will and the resources to eliminate this violence from across Europe.
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Response to Pharmaceutical Strategy - Timely patient access to affordable medicines

3 Jul 2020

The European Institute of Women’s Health fully supports the Commission’s new pharmaceutical strategy to ensure timely patient access to affordable medicines for all. Our organisation is working to make the improvement of health and well-being of women and their families across the lifespan a priority for EU and national action. The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted and exacerbated sex and gender inequities in societies across Europe and the need for clearly defined response mechanisms. The sustainability of health systems has become an urgent issue and with-it universal access to prevention, treatment and care for all EU citizens. We agree that innovation efforts are not always aligned to public health needs, for example in our area of interest there is a certain knowledge gap in the treatment area of safe medicines use during pregnancy and breastfeeding and also medicines for older people with several co-morbidities. In its new Regulatory Science Strategy 2025, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has addressed various unmet medical needs for certain population groups such as pregnant and breastfeeding women and older people. We therefore welcome the Commission’s proposal to enable innovation for unmet medical needs by harnessing the benefits of the digital technology. However, we would argue that EMA needs to be given the necessary resources to enable the Agency to address this currently unmet medical need.
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Response to Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan

20 Feb 2020

The EIWH welcomes the proposed Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan to support Member States to strengthen policy and programmes at every stage of the disease: prevention, diagnosis, treatment, life as a cancer survivor and palliative care.Large strides have been made to reduce the burden of cancer in Europe through improved screening and treatment. Yet, breast cancer is still the number one killer of women.Ovarian cancer results in more deaths than any other women’s reproductive cancer.The rates of many other cancers,e.g.lung cancer are on the rise, so the face of women’s cancer is changing in Europe. The proposed plan provides an opportunity to work together to advance the fight against cancer.Cancer prevention must be the key focus of any cancer strategy as it offers the most cost effective, long term approach to cancer control. Modifiable lifestyles or environmental risks exist for many cancers. The large evidence base that exists to demonstrate that exposure to tobacco products leads to an increased risk of cancer has ensured that anti-tobacco programmes form a key part of any cancer control programme.Smoking is by far the most important risk factor for many cancers including upper gastrointestinal, cervical, pancreatic and of course lung cancers. Following recent reports, the safety of e.cigarettes must be reviewed. Horizon 2020 Efforts must be stepped up to better understand the development, prevention, progression, treatment of gender-specific cancers that disproportionally affect women, by employing a life-course approach from young through older age. Research must not only explore the biological aspects of cancer, but must also address the mental, social, and economic implications for those with the disease as well as for those who survive it. Research must be conducted to better understand the influence of race and ethnicity on cancer in a European context.In order to improve existing policy and practice, cancer data must be disaggregated based on various factors, including age, gender and cancer stage. A robust, comparable monitoring system to track cancer across Member States should be set up at the EU level to enable a concerted, common approach. Existing data collection tracking new and existing cancer cases and respective deaths from gender-specific cancers that disproportionally affect women cancers across the EU must be improved and harmonised.Comprehensive, longitudinal data is essential to improve efforts to combat cancer as well as to assure quality and equity in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and care. Cancer screening programmes must be designed, assessed, and regularly updated based on evidence gathered by national cancer plans and registries. National and European capacity-building and systematic, quality-assured screening implementation must be supported by EU funding, particularly in under-resourced EU Member State. The EU and Member States must work together to improve policy and programmes to more forcefully tackle cancer.Health literacy campaigns to educate key stakeholders – including women themselves – about national screening programmes should be promoted.Vulnerable groups, including migrants and those living in poverty and those women under-utilising screening programmes should be specifically targeted.The EU has undertaken many efforts to promote cooperation and harmonisation with regard to cancer screening services. Currently, many healthcare systems face pressures to curb expenditures, but concerted efforts must be made to ensure effective screening programmes remain a top priority. Women with cancer face many physical, psychological, and financial burdens. Programmes must be put into place to support patients with cancer, particularly those women with advanced cancer.The 2003 Council Recommendations on Cancer Screening must be regularly re-evaluated based on the existing knowledge and best practice to address existing gaps and to reduce health inequities.
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Response to European Partnership for innovative health

27 Aug 2019

The European Institute of Women’s Health (EIWH) welcomes the proposal for a Council Regulation for a European Partnership for Innovative Health under Horizon Europe. The EIWH believes that diverse, interdisciplinary and cross-sectorial partnerships has the potential to contribute to the development of innovative health research addressing current and future unmet health challenges Early intervention is key to improving health and wellbeing. Action must be taken early and at critical points from pre- conception to childhood through to old age. Maternal health is a vital point for positive intervention to reduce the burden of disease and promote wellbeing. Maternal health has implications for the long-term health and wellbeing of both mother and child and the next generation, for example preventing maternal obesity, its complications and its impact on the child. Pregnancy induced hypertension, and pre-eclampsia have been associated with higher risk for cardiovascular disease and cognitive impairment later in life. There is a lack of information and data about the safe use of medication during pregnancy and lactation for both women and their healthcare professionals. Research and pharmacovigilance should be improved to ensure safe and effective use of medicines during pregnancy and lactation in order to provide robust information and advice for health professionals, mothers and pregnant women. One of the biggest challenges facing European is the ability of societies to maintain health across the lifespan particularly considering an increasingly ageing population. Europe has the highest proportion of older women in the world. Women are on the forefront of ageing due to their greater longevity than men, their multiple carer and societal roles and their lower financial resources. Specific attention should be devoted to important health issues that affect older people such as cancer and dementia. As the Inception Impact Assessment states there is an incomplete understanding of diseases... Women face higher rates of diseases, such as in breast cancer, osteoporosis and auto-immune diseases than do men. Other diseases affect men and women differently, including diabetes, depression and cardiovascular disease. Women do not present the same for conditions and respond differently to treatment than men. Women are the heaviest medicine users, yet they are under-represented in research and data. Consequently, the evidence base is weak for women as well as for older people. Women have more than a 50% greater risk of developing adverse drug reactions compared to men. The Clinical Trials Regulation must be implemented in order to combat the systematic under representation of women in clinical trials, disaggregating data by sex, gender and age. Medicinal products are safer and more effective for everyone when clinical research studies include diverse population groups. Translating the evidence from sex and gender research into practice will lead to more targeted, effective opportunities for prevention, treatment and care. The consideration of sex and gender in the proposed regulation is an important quality and safety issue and can lead to better outcomes for all patients in the future. The European Institute of Women’s Health (EIWH) is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that uses an evidence-based approach to advocate for an equitable, sex- and gender-sensitive approach in health policy, research, promotion, treatment and care. The Institute promotes biomedical and socio-economic research that addresses sex and gender-based differences to ensure access to quality treatment and care for women across their lifespan.
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Response to Strengthened cooperation against vaccine preventable diseases

30 Dec 2017

European Institute of Womens Health Vaccination—A Forgotten Public Health Protection Measure? Infectious diseases have posed and continue to pose serious threats to public health, especially in the developing world. Worldwide, smallpox has been eradicated and polio has been almost eliminated. However, there are many infectious diseases that continue to plague society worldwide such as malaria, Ebola, Zika, HIV/AIDS, and tuberculosis. Developing effective vaccines for those diseases and more would greatly benefit both society and individuals. Despite past successes, if and when immunisation is considered today it is primarily discussed in the context of childhood vaccination—preventing common diseases, such as diphtheria, measles, pertussis, rubella, mumps, and poliomyelitis (polio)—or if there is a disease scare. There seems to be a lack awareness of the threats of infectious disease and the importance of immunisation as an effective societal public health measure across the lifecourse. Vaccines protect society broadly and vulnerable individuals who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons specifically. Immunisation also protects opponents of vaccination who will not be immunised due to beliefs. Apart from protecting individuals, vaccination also prevents infectious diseases from spreading to vulnerable groups, such as people with underlying chronic conditions (like asthma or diabetes) and older people. The Council conclusions on vaccinations as an effective tool in public health were adopted in December 2014 under the Italian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The Conclusions state that immunisation programmes are an essential aspect of the health system. They highlight the recent outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases in Europe, outbreaks of diseases that were nearly eliminated through effective immunisation programmes in the past. With a population in Europe that is ageing ever more rapidly, the Conclusions also discuss the importance of life-long vaccinations, not only childhood immunisation. They commend the ECDC communication toolkits on vaccination and call for more health literacy efforts on immunisation to enable European citizens to make informed decisions
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