Centre of research excellence on women and non-communicable disease (CRE WaND): Prevention and Detection

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  Project Leader
  Professor Martha Hickey

  hickeym@unimelb.edu.au

  View researcher's webpage

Project Details

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) – cardiovascular disease (CVD), cancers, respiratory conditions, and diabetes – are responsible for two out of three deaths among women. In Australia three quarters of the total burden of disease in women results from six disease groups: CVD and diabetes, cancers, musculoskeletal, respiratory, neurological and mental health conditions. The prevalence and progression of NCDs show marked sex differences, for example, from the rates of osteoporosis, depression, and asthma, to female cancers, and the risks posed by diabetes. Further, many NCDs and poor reproductive outcomes share common risk factors such as obesity, which increases the risk of both pregnancy complications and CVD events. Female reproductive characteristics pose additional risks for NCDs, for instance, early menarche and premature menopause are both associated with increased risk of CVD and diabetes.

The Centre of Research Excellence on Women and Non-communicable Diseases (CRE-WaND) aims to encompass and prioritise NCDs by taking an integrated approach to quantifying the risks of NCDs in women, including the role of health behaviours and reproductive characteristics; women’s use of health services across life; and develop targeted strategies for practice guidelines and protocols for the prevention and detection of NCDs in women.

Researchers

Prof Martha Hickey – Chief Investigator/ Professor

Dr Mridula Bandyopadhyay – Research Fellow - Translation

Collaborators

University of Queensland

Funding

This research has been funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council and The The Centre of Research Excellence on Women and Non-communicable Diseases

Research Outcomes

CRE-WaND aims to address the urgent public health challenges by providing evidence and translation research needed to develop relevant policy and preventive health strategies that can significantly reduce NCDs in women