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“Advancing women’s health is fundamental to achieving universal health coverage, health equity and gender equality.” - World Health Organization

On 20 April, MedTechONE hosted the latest edition of its MedTech Links series, this time spotlighting innovations in women’s health emerging from Imperial. The event brought together over 100 attendees, including researchers, clinicians, innovators, and industry partners, creating a valuable forum for collaboration and knowledge exchange.

Earlier this month, the UK government launched its renewed Women’s Health Strategy, outlining a 10-year plan to improve health outcomes and experiences for women. As Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Wes Streeting has repeatedly highlighted, systemic failures in women’s healthcare remain deeply concerning. Too many women report being ignored, dismissed, or inadequately treated - over 80% say they have experienced instances where healthcare professionals did not listen to them. These failures have, in some cases, led to severe physical and psychological harm.

The time is here and now - we must build a better experience for women, Dr Celine Mougenot Lead of the Collective Innovation Lab and keynote speaker

This renewed strategy is backed by a record £26 billion investment in the NHS, alongside targeted initiatives such as a £1.5 million FemTech Challenge Fund aimed at accelerating innovations in women’s healthcare.

Despite this progress, many conditions affecting women remain underfunded, understudied, and poorly understood - both in clinical research and product design. A recurring theme throughout the event was the urgent need to involve women in the design process from the outset. Initiatives such as Imperial’s Collective Innovation Lab are addressing this by developing digital tools that enable co-design and ensure women’s voices are central to innovation.

Policy, Funding and the Landscape of Women’s Health

emphasised that women’s health must extend beyond reproductive care. Currently, women remain underrepresented across the research and development pipeline, accounting for only around one-third of study participants.

This imbalance has real-world consequences. For example, AI diagnostic tools for liver disease miss up to 44% of cases in women. Similarly, differences in disease presentation - such as colon cancer appearing more frequently on the right side in women - can lead to misdiagnosis. Even medical devices, such as hip implants, are often designed based on male anatomy, resulting in poorer outcomes for women.

Research led by the George Institute at Imperial is tackling these disparities by developing frameworks to improve gender equity in data collection and research design. Encouragingly, major UK funders - including NIHR, Wellcome Trust, and the British Heart Foundation - have begun investing in higher-quality, gender-sensitive datasets.

from Imperial Enterprise also highlighted growing momentum in the sector, with a 50% increase in venture funding for women’s health and projections suggesting up to $1 trillion could be unlocked globally by 2040. However, challenges remain: fragmented data, underrepresentation in trials, and barriers to scaling innovations within healthcare systems.

concluded this section by highlighting programmes that help raise the profile of Global Women's health strategies such as the which has 47 projects world wide and which has invested $250 million women’s health breakthroughs. 

Addressing issues in Women's Health requires a coordinated, end-to-end approach - from data access and evidence generation to real-world implementation. Imperial’s Women’s Health Network and School of Convergence Science, Health and Technology are key to driving this integrated effort.

Diagnostics and Digital Innovation

The event also showcased cutting-edge technologies aimed at improving diagnosis and care across women’s health.

One example addressed complications during labour. Epidural-related maternal fever (ERMF) affects 15-25% of women receiving epidurals and can lead to serious complications, including neonatal brain injury. and his team have developed a wearable device designed to regulate body temperature by stimulating thermal receptors in the skin. Currently at Technology Readiness Level 4, the team is working to extend its duration of effectiveness and is seeking commercial partners to advance clinical testing.

Another innovation focuses on improving the diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis, a condition linked to increased risk of HPV infection and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Traditional diagnostic methods are slow and resource-intensive. presented a rapid, point-of-care test using mass spectrometry (DESI-MS), capable of delivering results in just three minutes with greater sensitivity and accuracy.

Precision medicine was also a key theme. highlighted advances in understanding and treating polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a condition affecting

one in ten women. Her DAISY-PCOS study aims to better characterise metabolic risks and tailor treatments using detailed biochemical profiling, paving the way for more personalised care.

A Life-Course Approach to Women’s Health

The final session emphasised that women’s health must be understood across the entire lifespan - not just during reproductive years.

presented work on treating lymphoedema following breast cancer treatment, exploring regenerative approaches to restore lymphatic function. Meanwhile, discussed osteoporosis, which affects one in three women over 50. Advances in genetic testing and risk prediction tools such as FRAX could enable earlier diagnosis and more personalised treatment strategies.

Cardiovascular disease - responsible for around 35% of deaths in women globally-was another critical focus. highlighted how diagnostic thresholds and tools, often based on male physiology, fail to accurately capture women’s symptoms. She called for sex-specific approaches to diagnosis, treatment, and long-term monitoring, particularly following pregnancy-related complications.

Finally, Dr Anna Stejskalova presented pioneering work using organ-on-a-chip technology to model female reproductive biology. These systems allow researchers to study conditions and test treatments using human tissue in ways that bridge the gap between animal models and clinical application.

Across all sessions, a clear message emerged: women’s health must no longer be an afterthought. From policy and funding to diagnostics and treatment, a systemic shift is needed to ensure research, innovation, and care are truly inclusive.

The MedTech Links event demonstrated that meaningful progress is underway- but also that sustained collaboration, investment, and commitment are essential to closing the gender gap in healthcare.

ChatGPT-5 was used to do the final edit of this article. 

To discover more about medtech research and ways in which Imperial's network of inventors and innovators are working with pioneering partners in this sector, come along to Imperial Collider: Health on Thursday 4 June. The event features expert speakers from Imperial and industry leaders from companies such as Novartis, Danaher, Argenx, Apollo Therapeutics and many more: ()