The 2021 National Summit on the Health of Women was held virtually by the Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital on Thursday, June 17. Over 500 people registered for the event from 11 different countries: Brazil, Canada, China, Demark, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Mexico, the UK and across 29 states in the US. Attendees from the bioscience community including academics, NIH, regulatory, governmental, advocacy, biopharma and philanthropic sectors actively participated in many hours of the half-day program that featured lively discussions from leaders in the field of women’s health research.
The keynote address was delivered by Susan Hockfield, PhD, MIT President Emerita. Dr. Hockfield’s shared her professional journey to becoming the first woman and life scientist to lead MIT and discussed the importance of continuing to include women in science and academia. In her thought-provoking talk, Hockfield said “some women have made it – they’ve found their way along little footpaths. We need to turn footpaths into superhighways. We need to make it possible for more women to get their ideas into real technologies that will change the world.”
Remarks from Executive Director Hadine Joffe, MD, MSc, Sunil Eappen, MD, MBA, Interim President and Chief Medical Officer, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Jack Connors, Chair Emeritus, Mass General Brigham, set the tone for a meaningful and exciting day of programming and reminded attendees that advancing the health of women advances the health of us all.
Marylou Sudders, Secretary of Health and Human Services of Massachusetts introduced the plenary panel Macro-Influences on the Health of Women, which featured speakers from the FDA, NIH, and biopharma and was hosted by Connors Center Executive Director Hadine Joffe, MD, MSc. Panelists Kaveeta Vashisht, MD, PharmD, Associate Commissioner for Women’s Health; Director, Office of Research on Women’s Health, FDA, Janine Clayton, MD, FARVO, Associate Director for Research on Women’s Health; Director, Office of Research on Women’s Health, NIH and Yasmean Wahdan, MD, Vice President for US Medical Affairs, Women’s HealthCare, Bayer Pharmaceuticals discussed the critical components of health that exist outside of the doctor-patient relationship and shared their insights and priorities in advancing the health of women through the lens of their respective organizations.
JoAnn Manson, MD, MPH, DrPH spoke about several large-scale studies of women’s health led or co-led by Brigham and Women’s Hospital and highlighted how the inclusion of digital technology in clinical trials is advancing the health of women.
Carolee Lee, Founder and CEO of AccessCircles and WHAM! discussed the economic impact and importance of including women in biomedical research. She highlighted findings from the WHAM! Report which showed that advancing the health of women has fundamental implications for the economic growth of our society. She said “when it comes to keeping our economy healthy, we are often using analyses and data that do not apply to half of the population, the driving force and engines of the global economy. We need more research dollars and investment in companies focused on prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases that affect women disproportionately.”
Concurrent facilitated sessions were introduced by Charlotte Owens, MD, Head of R&D Center for Health Equity and Patient Affairs at Takeda, who discussed the importance of diversity, equity, inclusion and patient-centered approaches in biomedical research to advance the health of women. The breakout sessions showcased groundbreaking research and expertise on women’s health research.
Session A: Toward Women-Centric Care: How to Achieve Sex and Gender Inclusion in Biomedical Research and Clinical Care was hosted by Primavera A Spagnolo, MD, PhD, and featured Yesmean Wahdan, MD, Barbara Bierer, MD, and Deb Bartz, MD, MPH. This session discussed current efforts, challenges and strategies that should be developed and implemented across the bioscience ecosystem to ensure that the specific needs of women are ‘put at the center’ of the healthcare women receive. The session also focused on strategies to ensure adequate inclusion of women in clinical trials, incorporating women’s needs in the drug/device development process and educating physicians in addressing women’s health needs for the increased inclusion of women in clinical research and implications for clinical care.
Session B: Innovating and Investing for the Health of Women was hosted by Jennifer Griffin, PhD and included Chris Coburn, Alice Zheng, MD, MBA, MPH, Tracy Warren, MBA, and Alicia Chong Rodriguez, MSc. This session gathered leading investors, entrepreneurs and representatives from MA government, venture capital, digital health and consulting firms to discuss how the field of women’s health technology is expanding. Speakers discussed the role of women in promoting this field and the challenges associated with generating investments.
Session C: Digital Innovations for Women’s Health Research highlighted the benefits that digital innovations offer to women’s health research. Speakers Shruthi Mahalingaiah, MD, MS, Anne Marie Jukic, PhD, MSPH, and Chris Curry, MD, PhD discussed the process leading to the Apple Women’s Health Study and how these kinds of collaborations and approaches are transforming how we study women.
Session D: Wins for Women: Partnering Across Sectors was hosted by Seema Basu, PhD and highlighted strategies, approaches, advantages, and challenges of industry-academia partnerships and their role in advancing the health of women. Panelists included Steve Kanes, MD, PhD and Jamie Maguire, PhD and showcased a case study from Sage Therapeutics, Inc. and Tufts University School of Medicine that illustrated the journey starting with preclinical research and leading to the Sage-Zulresso clinical trial approved by the FDA.
Following the concurrent sessions, the Roundtable of Research Leaders in the Health of Women, introduced by Paul Anderson MD, PhD, Sr. VP of Research and Education and Chief Academic Officer, gathered faculty members of Brigham and Women’s Hospital: This Roundtable was hosted by Tanya Laidlaw, MD and included panelists Scott Solomon, MD, Cynthia Morton, PhD and Lindsey Baden, MD who discussed how their groundbreaking research is advancing the health of women.
Throughout the day, attendees learned more about the First.In.Women Precision Medicine Platform, the Connors Center’s flagship program that advances the inclusion and specific investigation of women in the development and utilization of new drugs, devices and digital therapeutics.
Senator Karen Spilka highlighted Massachusetts’ commitment to the life sciences enterprises and emphasized the importance of health equity in our state. Senator Spilka announced the inaugural First Look Award, a pilot award program in partnership with the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, and Caroline Cunningham-Young, Co-Chair of the Women’s Health Advisory Board, introduced our three IGNITE pilot award recipients.
Thank you for your interest and engagement in the Connors Center National Summit on the Health of Women! Together, we can commit to advancing the health of women and change the status quo. We thank you for your support of our mission.
12:00pm – 5:30pm
12:00 – 12:15
- Jack Connors, Chair Emeritus, Mass General Brigham
- Sunil Eappen, MD, MBA, Interim President and Chief Medical Officer, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Hadine Joffe, MD, MSc, Executive Director, Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
12:15 – 12:35
- Carolee Lee, CEO and Founder, WHAM!
12:35 – 12:40
- Marylou Sudders, MSW, Secretary of Health and Human Services of Massachusetts
12:40 – 1:30
This session will feature three key players in the bioscience ecosystem: the NIH, the FDA, and biopharma who will share their insights and priorities in advancing the health of women.
- Speakers:
- Janine Clayton, MD, FARVO, Associate Director for Research on Women’s Health; Director, Office of Research on Women’s Health, the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- Kaveeta Vasisht, MD, PharmD, Associate Commissioner for Women’s Health at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Yesmean Wahdan, MD, Vice President for US Medical Affairs, Women’s HealthCare, Bayer Pharmaceuticals
- Moderator:
- Hadine Joffe, MD MSc, Executive Director, Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
1:30 – 1:35
1:35 – 1:45
- JoAnn Manson, MD, MPH, DrPH, Chief, Division of Preventive Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
1:45 – 1:55
1:55 – 3:00
Summit attendees will participate in one of four interactive facilitated sessions:
- Introduction by Charlotte Owens, MD, Head of R&D Center for Health Equity and Patient Affairs, Takeda
SESSION A: TOWARD WOMEN-CENTRIC CARE: HOW TO ACHIEVE SEX AND GENDER INCLUSION IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH AND CLINICAL CARE
The ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach has historically dominated biomedical research and clinical care. This session is designed to provide practical examples and suggest impactful approaches and actions that can be taken by researchers, clinicians and educators to include female-specific and differentiating factors in clinical research, drug and digital technology development, medical education and clinical care.
This session is co-organized with Bayer Pharmaceuticals, Premier Champion Sponsor for the National Summit on the Health of Women
- Hosted by Primavera Spagnolo, MD, PhD, Scientific Director, First.In.Women Precision Medicine Platform, Connors Center for Women’s Health & Gender Biology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Yesmean Wahdan, MD, Vice President for US Medical Affairs, Women’s HealthCare, Bayer Pharmaceuticals
- Barbara Bierer, MD, Faculty Director, Multi-Regional Clinical Trials Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Deb Bartz, MD, MPH, Director of Education, Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
SESSION B: INNOVATING AND INVESTING IN THE HEALTH OF WOMEN
This session will gather leading investors, entrepreneurs and representatives from MA government, venture capital, digital health and consulting firms to discuss how the field of women’s health technology is expanding. Speakers will discuss the role of women in promoting this field and the challenges associated with generating investments.
- Speakers:
- Alicia Chong Rodriguez, MSc, Co-Founder and CEO, Bloomer Tech
- Chris Coburn, Chief Innovation Officer, Mass General Brigham Innovation
- Tracy Warren, MBA, Co-Founder & CEO, Astarte Ventures
- Alice Zheng, MD, MBA, MPH, Engagement Manager, McKinsey & Company
- Moderator:
- Jennifer Griffin, PhD, VP, Industry Strategy and Investments, Massachusetts Life Sciences Center
SESSION C: DIGITAL INNOVATIONS FOR WOMEN’S HEALTH RESEARCH
This session will highlight the benefits that digital innovations offer to women’s health research. Speakers from industry, academia, and government will discuss on the process leading to the Apple Women’s Health Study and how this kind of collaborations and approach may transform how we study women.
- Speakers:
- Christine Curry, MD, PhD, Health Team, Apple
- Anne Marie Jukic, PhD, Principal Investigator, Fertility and Reproductive Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, NIH
- Shruthi Mahalingaiah, MD, MS, co-Principal Investigator, Apple Women’s Health Study, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
SESSION D: WINS FOR WOMEN: PARTNERING ACROSS SECTORS
This session will highlight strategies, approaches, advantages, and challenges of industry-academia partnerships and their role in advancing the health of women. We will showcase a case study with our panelists from Sage Therapeutics, Inc. and Tufts University School of Medicine that will illustrate the journey starting with preclinical research and leading to the Sage-Zulresso clinical trial approved by the FDA.
Sage Therapeutics is a Champion Sponsor for the National Summit on the Health of Women.
- Speakers:
- Seema Basu, PhD, Market Sector Leader, Mass General Brigham Innovation
- Steve Kanes, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer, Sage Therapeutics
- Jamie Maguire, PhD, Kenneth and JoAnn G. Wellner Professor in Neuroscience, Tufts University School of Medicine
3:00 – 3:10
3:10 – 3:55
Advances in basic science, enrollment of women in clinical trials, and novel therapeutics
- Hosted by Tanya Laidlaw, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Scott Solomon, MD, Professor of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Cynthia Morton, PhD, Professor of of Obstetrics and Gynecology and of Pathology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Lindsey Baden, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Introduction by Paul Anderson, MD, PhD, Sr. VP of Research and Education and Chief Academic Officer, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
3:55 – 4:05
4:05 – 4:10
- Senator Karen E. Spilka, JD, President, Massachusetts State Senate
4:10 – 4:25
- Presented by Kenneth Turner, President and Chief Executive Officer, Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, and Caroline Cunningham Young, Co-Chair, Women’s Health Advisory Board, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
4:25 – 5:00
Susan Hockfield, PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology President Emerita
- Introduction by Cindy Liu, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
5:00 – 5:15
- First.In.Women Testimonial
- Hadine Joffe, MD, MSc, Executive Director, Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
The Awards Ceremony will announce the First Look and IGNITE Awards. The First Look Awards are a collaboration between the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center and the Connors Center’s First.In.Women Precision Medicine Platform, supporting translational research at Massachusetts research institutions that advance our understanding of sex and gender differences and diseases or conditions that affect women exclusively, predominately, or differentially. The IGNITE Awards advance our understanding of female-specific and sex-differentiated effects in novel therapeutics. IGNITE investigations leverage the First.In.Women Precision Medicine Platform to shape the scientific focus of the study and to assess project goals, milestones and deliverables to ensure that the emerging clinical translation remains aligned with the First.In.Women mission. IGNITE research includes basic, translational, and clinical research advancing therapeutic strategies using drugs, devices, and digital therapeutics.
Presenters:
- Kenneth Turner
- Caroline Cunningham Young
To be announced!
Vesela Kovacheva, MD PhD, Attending Anesthesiologist, Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital; Assistant Professor of Anesthesia, Harvard Medical School
-
- “Development of Novel Algorithm for Prognostication and Therapeutic Decision Support in Pregnant Patients with Severe Hypertension”
- Kovacheva is developing a novel algorithm to provide decision support to aid physicians in selecting the best drug in the optimal dose and predict the treatment response for pregnant patients with severe hypertension.
Primavera A Spagnolo, MD PhD, Scientific Director, First.In.Women Precision Medicine Platform, Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
-
- “Investigating Demographic Knowledge, Attitudinal, and Accessibility Factors Influencing Health Experiences and Behaviors and Clinical Trials Participation in US Women”
- Spagnolo will conduct a survey study to assess knowledge, attitudinal, and accessibility factors influencing health behaviors, medication use, and participation in clinical research in US women as identified by women themselves.
To be announced!
The Summit Advisory Committee consists of key experts from across the academic and biopharma ecosystem.
Paul Anderson, MD, PhD
Scientific Advisory Board Member, Connors Center for Women’s Health & Gender Biology
Senior Vice President, Research and Education, Chief Academic Officer
Associate Chief, Division of Rheumatology, Immunology and Allergy
K. Frank Austen Professor of Medicine
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Academic Dean
Mass General Brigham
Lindsey Baden, MD
Director, Center for Clinical Investigation
Associate Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Deborah Bartz, MD, MPH
Director of Education, Connors Center of Women’s Health and Gender biology
Associate Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Seema Basu, PhD
Market Sector Leader
Mass General Brigham HealthCare Innovation
Susan Blumenthal, MD, MPA
First Deputy Assistant for Women’s Health
Rear Admiral (ret.)
Former U.S. Assistant Surgeon General
Edward Boyer, MD, PhD
Director of Academic Development, Department of Emergency Medicine
Associate Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Tanuja Chitnis, MD
Professor of Neurology
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Director, Mass General Brigham Pediatric MS Center
Massachusetts General Hospital
Janine Clayton, MD
Director, Office of Research on Women’s Health
Associate Director of Research on Women’s Health
National Institute of Health
Caroline Cunningham Young
Women’s Health Advisory Board Co-Chair
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Trung Do, MBA, MA
Scientific Advisory Board, Connors Center for Women’s Health & Gender Biology
Vice President, Business Development
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Mass General Brigham HealthCare Innovation
Hanna Eilken, PhD
Strategic Alliance Manager
Bayer Pharmaceuticals
Maria Teresa Ferretti, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Women’s Brain Project
Jennifer Griffin, PhD
Vice President, Industry Strategy and Investments
Massachusetts Life Sciences Center
Anula Jayasuriya, MD, PhD, MBA
Founder and Managing Director
EXXclaim Capital
Bernie Jones, MEd
Vice President of Public Policy
Chief of Staff
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Ian Krop, MD, PhD
Associate Chief, Division of Breast Oncology, Susan F. Smith Center for Women’s Cancers
Director, Clinical Research for the Breast Oncology Program
Associate Professor of Medicine
Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Harvard Medical School
Carolee Lee
Founder & CEO
AccessCircles
JoAnn Manson, MD, DrPH
Scientific Advisory Board Member, Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology
Chief of the Division of Preventative Medicine
Professor of Medicine, Department of Epidemiology
Michael and Lee Bell Professor of Women’s Health
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Beth Martignetti
Women’s Health Advisory Board Member
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Michelle O'Donoghue, MD, MPH
Cardiovascular Medicine Specialist
Associate Professor of Medicine
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Lydia Pace, MD, MPH
Director of Women’s Health Policy and Advocacy, Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology
Associate Professor of Medicine
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Antonella Santuccione Chadha, PhD
Co-Founder & CEO
Women’s Brain Project
Sebastian Schneeweiss, MD, ScD
Chief, Division of Pharmacoepidemiology & Pharmaeconomics, Department of Medicine
Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Janet Rich-Edwards, ScD, MPH
Director of Lifecourse Epidemiology, Connors Center of Women’s Health and Gender Biology
Associate Professor of Medicine
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Farah Shafi, MD
Deputy Medical Director
Allways Health Partners
Tee Taggart
Women’s Health Advisory Board Member
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Jenny Toolin McAullife
Women’s Health Advisory Board Co-Chair
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Yesmean Wahdan, MD
VP US Medical Affairs
Women’s Healthcare at Bayer Pharmaceuticals
Tracy Warren, MBA
Managing Partner
Astarte Ventures
Jamie White, MS
Health Science Policy Analyst
National Institute of Health
Nicole Woitowich, PhD
Associate Director, Women’s Health Research Institute
Northwestern University
Gwill York
Women’s Health Advisory Board Co-Chair
Brigham & Women’s Hospital
For questions about our upcoming Summit, email ConnorsCenter@bwh.harvard.edu
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