Annual NIH Research Priorities for Women’s Health

Process: The Ad-Hoc Research Subcommittee of the Coordinating Committee on Research on Women's Health (CCRWH), composed of representatives from the NIH institutes and centers, reviews the previous priorities and new opportunities for priority research for ORWH.

Publication: FY 2009 NIH Research Priorities for Women’s Health (85kb)

The ORWH co-funds meritorius research on women’s health in partnerships with the NIH institutes and centers. This research includes basic, clinical, and translational research as well as research that examines sex and gender differences.

In the development of the annual research priorities, many areas of research opportunities have been described in terms of overarching approaches. Those recommended here signify approaches and areas in which the ORWH wishes to stimulate and encourage research on women's health. Of particular research interest are

• Basic
• Translational
• Behavioral
• Clinical research in women's health, especially to determine sex/gender differences or other variables.

The following overarching approaches were recommended:

• Sex/Gender Determinants
• Lifespan
• Health Disparities/Differences and Diversity
• Interdisciplinary Research

Special Areas of Emphasis

• Prevention/Treatment
  from basic biological factors, including identifying and validating biomarkers, to risk and its applications to disease prevention, early detection, and treatment.
• Sex and Genetics/Pharmacogenomics
  genetic, molecular, and cellular basis for action of pharmacologic agents known to have different effects in females than in males. Research on effects of sex as a modifier of gene function and response is under-investigated.