University of Zurich creates first chair for gender medicine

The University of Zurich is creating a new chair for gender medicine. It is the first professorship of gender medicine in Switzerland. This is intended to put women at the center of medical research.

“We have known for thirty years that there are differences between men and women. Nevertheless, women are still not treated properly,” Catherine Gebhard said in a statement from the University of Zurich (UZH) on Monday. She is a professor at the Inselspital Bern and has been researching gender medicine for several years.

Despite this knowledge, the majority of research still focuses on men. This is also apparent from the animal studies, which are mainly carried out on male animals. The result: women are disadvantaged. For example, the risk of misdiagnosing a heart attack is seven times higher for a young woman than for a man of the same age.

According to the University of Zurich, four promising candidates have already presented their research at a public symposium. The professorship must be completed by early 2024 at the latest. The new chair has been made financially possible by the decisive start-up funding from various foundations. (aeg/sda)