What is Research
Research can be defined as “the detailed study of a subject, in order to discover new information or reach a new understanding.” This is a very broad definition, and in truth research is very varied. It can be conducted by doctors, nurses, psychologists, scientists, drug companies, medical technology industries… to name just a few!
Health research is research that is trying to learn.
- how the body works (physiology)
- how disease processes affect the body and mind (pathology)
- how these processes can be detected (investigations such as X-rays & CAT scans)
- what treatments are effective for certain diseases, &
- how people’s beliefs and lifestyle affect health (diet, compliance with medications, etc)
...in order to prevent, diagnose and treat disease more effectively.
Taking part in research may involve being presented with many new, confusing terms. This can lead to people feeling intimidated. View our glossary of terms and our question/answer section to make you more knowledgeable and comfortable with your decision to participate in research.
Other resources:
clinicaltrials.gov— also produces a glossary of terms and an introduction to clinical trials - full of need-to-know information.
Women’s Health Research
Women’s health is a broad term. To help focus the issue for research, we believe that women’s health is any issue that affects women exclusively (e.g. ovarian and uterine disorders), more often than it affects men (e.g. breast cancer and multiple sclerosis) or differently from how it affects men (e.g. heart disease).
We have defined women’s health research as:
- Research enrolling ONLY women.
- Research that assesses a biological or physiological difference between women and men (i.e. evaluates gender differences).
- Research investigating health conditions that affect only women or that affect women disproportionately over men.
Why do women need to be involved in research?
Until recently, most health research was conducted on males. Researchers believed that the answers they got could be applied to women also. We are learning that this may not always be the case….
Take, for example, heart disease. Did you know that this is the leading cause of death in women? Almost twice as many women die from heart disease and stroke than from ALL forms of cancer combined. Heart disease is no longer just a man’s concern - yet almost all of our knowledge of heart disease comes from research conducted with men. Perhaps this is why 38% of women, compared with 25% of men, die within one year of a heart attack.
Most women are also unaware that heart disease does not strike all women equally. Heart disease is more common among some minority women. For example, 79% of older African-American women have high blood pressure, a risk factor for heart disease.
Most women know that chest pain, pain in the left arm and shortness of breath are symptoms of a heart attack. But did you know that women are less likely to experience these symptoms and may just feel dizzy, nauseated and pain in their abdomen? The usual tool for diagnosing heart disease, the EKG stress test, is often not helpful in diagnosing heart disease in women and may lead to women being under-treated or not treated at all.
Even if women do get treatment, they more commonly experience severe complications of the medication used to treat heart disease—medication that has mainly been tested on men.
If women want better, more appropriate health care, we first need to make sure that we are part of the development process—and that means getting involved in clinical trials.
