A new white paper from the Fondation de l’Académie de Médecine calls for a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to women’s health—addressing persistent diagnostic gaps, structural inequities, and overlooked conditions across the lifespan.
At the heart of this year’s Octobre Rose, an initiative often centered on breast cancer awareness, La Fondation de l’Académie de Médecine is urging healthcare professionals and policymakers to look beyond a single disease. With the publication of a landmark white paper — “Santé des femmes – Regards croisés et pistes d’actions” — the Foundation highlights the pressing need to address women’s health as a comprehensive, lifelong continuum that goes well beyond oncology.
This white paper is the culmination of a year-long multidisciplinary initiative involving physicians, researchers, social scientists, and patient advocates. It sheds light on persistent blind spots in clinical practice and public health, while laying out 114 actionable recommendations aimed at improving outcomes for women across all ages and backgrounds.
“Women’s health is not limited to reproductive concerns. It encompasses mental, social, and psychological dimensions that must be addressed at every stage of life,” says Dr. Élisabeth Elefant, coordinating author of the report.
A Broader Vision for Women’s Health
Historically, women’s health has been narrowly associated with reproductive health and, more recently, breast cancer prevention and treatment. While these are undeniably crucial issues, the Foundation argues that such a limited perspective fails to capture the complexity of women’s health needs.
The white paper calls for a shift toward a life-course, holistic approach, aligning with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) definition of health as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.” This means addressing mental health, chronic disease prevention, workplace factors, and health literacy alongside traditional medical concerns.
The report is the product of seven conferences held in 2024, gathering experts from multiple disciplines. Their findings underscore that a woman’s health trajectory is shaped not only by biology but also by social determinants, economic conditions, and systemic biases in medical research and care delivery.
Persistent Inequalities: A Troubling Picture
Despite remarkable medical advances in recent decades, women continue to face higher rates of misdiagnosis, delayed diagnosis, and inadequate treatment in several critical areas of health. The data compiled in the white paper is stark:
- Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death among women in France, with 200 deaths per day. Women experience a higher 30-day mortality rate following myocardial infarction compared to men (6.5% vs. 2.5%), a gap attributed in part to atypical symptom presentation and under-recognition in emergency settings.
- Endometriosis affects around 10% of women, yet the average diagnostic delay is still approximately seven years, with significant impacts on quality of life and fertility.
- Menopause affects 14 million women in France, but only a small fraction receive hormonal therapy despite evidence supporting its use for symptom management in appropriate cases.
- Mental health is another area of growing concern: adolescent girls show rates of depression and self-harm 35% higher than their male peers. In the perinatal period, 1 in 6 women experiences postpartum depression, and suicide has become the leading cause of maternal mortality in France up to one year after birth.
Access to care compounds these medical challenges. Nearly 40% of women in precarious situations report forgoing care for financial reasons. Women with disabilities and those facing social vulnerability experience significant structural barriers, reinforcing cycles of poor health and delayed interventions.
“Women live longer, but not necessarily healthier lives. Too many of their health issues remain invisible to the healthcare system,” emphasizes Prof. Richard Villet, co-coordinator of the white paper.
A Roadmap for Change: 114 Recommendations
The white paper goes beyond diagnosis to offer concrete, structured solutions for addressing systemic shortcomings in women’s health. Its 114 recommendations are grouped into five strategic pillars:
- Recognize women-specific health issues: This includes improving prevention, diagnosis, and management of cardiovascular disease, endometriosis, menopause-related conditions, and chronic pain syndromes.
- Integrate sex as a key variable in research and clinical trials: Women have historically been underrepresented in biomedical research, leading to treatment protocols based on male physiology. Correcting this imbalance is essential for tailored and effective care.
- Inform and educate early: The Foundation calls for comprehensive health education from adolescence, covering topics such as contraception, fertility, sexual health, menopause, and mental well-being without stigma.
- Improve access to care for all women: This includes targeted interventions for women in precarious situations, those with disabilities, and survivors of violence.
- Address workplace health determinants: Occupational exposure, psychosocial stress, and gender discrimination are recognized as significant but underacknowledged health risks.
“We now have a roadmap to ensure women’s health is no longer an afterthought but a central priority in public health policy,” states Marina Carrère d’Encausse, physician and sponsor of the white paper.
The Foundation calls on healthcare professionals, research institutions, industry, and policymakers to adopt these recommendations and translate them into tangible practice changes.
Breaking the Silence: A Campaign on Menopause
In parallel with the publication of the white paper, the Foundation is launching a national awareness campaign on menopause from October 13 to 19, in partnership with Doctolib. The campaign targets women aged 45–55, aiming to combat misinformation, particularly the persistent belief that hormone therapy systematically increases breast cancer risk.
This initiative seeks to normalize conversations about menopause in clinical settings, encourage evidence-based decision-making, and direct women to reliable sources of information.
“We need to talk about menopause without fear or shame. Reliable information and open dialogue can profoundly improve women’s quality of life,” says Dr. Élisabeth Elefant.
For clinicians, the campaign is a reminder that proactive dialogue about menopause and perimenopausal symptoms should be standard practice, rather than patient-initiated. Addressing symptoms early can improve both physical and psychological well-being.
A Call to Action for the Medical Community
The publication of “Santé des femmes – Regards croisés et pistes d’actions” represents more than an academic milestone. It is a strategic public health call to action, urging the medical community to address the longstanding gaps in women’s health care and research.
For physicians, this means sharpening diagnostic vigilance for conditions that present differently in women, integrating mental health screening across the life course, and advocating for research and care models that reflect the diversity of female experiences.
The Foundation’s emphasis on cross-sector collaboration — between healthcare providers, public health agencies, researchers, and employers — acknowledges that no single actor can address these challenges alone. Structural change will require coordinated action.
References
- Fondation de l’Académie de Médecine. Santé des femmes – Regards croisés et pistes d’actions. White paper, October 2025.
- WHO. Definition of Health.
- INSEE and Santé publique France data on women’s health indicators.
