International research initiative aims to improve cardiovascular care for women

The American Heart Association, celebrating 100 years of lifesaving service as the world's leading nonprofit organization focused on heart and brain health for all, is joining with other top cardiovascular research funders around the world to support an international scientific research grant focused on women's cardiovascular health. Scientific researchers around the world are invited to apply for the award to foster global advancements in understanding and improving the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among women.

A 2022 presidential advisory from the American Heart Association reported that women continue to be underrepresented in research for cardiovascular disease (CVD), leading to gaps in knowledge and understanding of how CVD impacts women. The advisory emphasizes that some risk factors for heart disease are specific to women or carry a different risk for CVD events in women than in men, often in relation to the way life stages affect cardiovascular health.

The grant will be awarded by the Global Cardiovascular Research Funders Forum (GCRFF) – an international alliance of 12 major funders of cardiovascular research across the world.

The International Research Challenge on Women's Cardiovascular Health will fund one world-class international research program with up to $10 million over five years, to study and identify solutions to unmet clinical needs within women's cardiovascular health, including:

• Risk factors and prevention of cardiovascular disease across women's life stages;
• Clinical diagnosis and treatment of conditions more prevalent, or with worse outcomes among women; and
• Sex-specific underlying mechanisms of cardiovascular disease in women.

The American Heart Association is a leader in accelerating cardiovascular research and education, and in particular, bringing light to the unique challenges cardiovascular disease presents to women. We are pleased to be joined by other like-minded organizations in making this commitment to address the significant gaps that remain in research, diagnosis and care for women everywhere as part of our mission to ensure equitable health to all people."

Mariell Jessup, M.D., FAHA, chief science and medical officer of the American Heart Association and a board member of the GCRFF

This first-of-its-kind research funding opportunity will support a multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary research network to bring together experts from around the world. The chosen research team will work collaboratively to deliver impacts in women's cardiovascular health that no single continent, country or institution could achieve on its own. 

"Involvement in the GCRFF adds to our array of support for women's health research and amplifies the potential impact because of its multi-country, multi-discipline and multi-institutional emphasis," said Gina Wei, M.D., M.P.H., senior scientific advisor on women's health, associate director of the division of cardiovascular sciences and director of prevention and population science at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), a part of the National Institutes of Health. NHLBI is also one of the U.S.-based members of GCRFF.

"That all 12 members of the GCRFF have come together to support a common project in women's cardiovascular health – the consortium's first large-scale research project – sends a powerful message: This area is important, it deserves more attention and we as funders are committed to doing something about it," said David Tancredi, M.D., Ph.D., current chair of the GCRFF Board and president of the Leducq Foundation, a member organization of the GCRFF.

The International Research Challenge will invite proposals focused on advancing women's cardiovascular health in areas that are under-researched and/or require greater understanding. The successful research program must demonstrate a clear path to impacting and improving patient outcomes, and research outcomes must be applicable to GCRFF member countries and have the potential for wider global application.

Letters of intent to apply for the research challenge are due by January 15, 2025.