A study that aims to transform heart disease prevention and care for women around the world has been awarded US $10 million by a global collaboration of major cardiovascular disease research funders, including Heart & Stroke.
The research seeks to advance our understanding of how menopause shapes heart health. The funding will also support the team to launch the largest clinical trial of its kind to detect silent changes in arteries, and test whether earlier prevention can stop or even reverse their progression.
The research has been funded by a sub-group of the Global Cardiovascular Research Funders Forum (GCRFF) through its International Research Challenge on Women’s Cardiovascular Health. The funding marks a significant milestone as the Forums’ first major joint investment and a bold step to address areas of unmet clinical need within women’s cardiovascular health.
The SHE-HEALS study, led by Professor Ziad Mallat at the University of Cambridge and Professor Martha Hickey at the University of Melbourne, will use cutting edge techniques to uncover the changes in arteries that begin during perimenopause and drive increasing heart disease risk. As part of this work, the team will also investigate how age at menopause affects heart disease risk, and whether taking HRT impacts this risk.
The researchers believe that current guidelines miss a vital window for earlier prevention in women. To address this, the team will establish the largest trial of its kind to detect silent atherosclerosis – the hidden hardening of the arteries and a key driver of heart disease – in women in perimenopause and early after menopause.
By spotting the early signs of disease before symptoms appear, the study will test whether early prevention, including targeting key risk factors such as high blood pressure and cholesterol, can stop or even reverse progression of atherosclerosis.
The SHE-HEALS team hope that the evidence from this study will shape global guidelines, paving the way for earlier, more effective prevention to protect the hearts of millions of women for longer.
“Heart conditions and stroke remains the leading cause of premature death for women in this country, yet far too many of the risks they face go unseen and unaddressed," says Dr. Christine Faubert, VP Health Equity and Mission Impact at Heart & Stroke. "The SHE‑HEALS study represents a transformational step toward changing that reality. By uncovering the early, silent changes that occur during perimenopause, this research has the potential to close longstanding gaps in women’s cardiovascular care. Heart & Stroke is proud to support this groundbreaking work, because beating health inequity requires bold investment, strong collaboration, and a commitment to ensuring every woman gets the prevention and care she deserves.”
The GCRFF is a coalition of major international cardiovascular research funders whose aim is to improve cardiovascular health worldwide by catalysing, supporting and promoting transformational international research efforts in heart, stroke and circulatory diseases.
Forum members funding this grant include the American Heart Association, the British Heart Foundation, the Danish Heart Foundation (Hjerteforeningen), the Dutch Heart Foundation (Hartstichting), the German Centre for Cardiovascular Research (Deutsches Zentrum für Herz-Kreislauf-Forschung or DZHK), the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, the Leducq Foundation, the National Heart Foundation of Australia, the National Heart Foundation of New Zealand, and the Swiss Heart Foundation.
Media contact:
Alicia D’Aguiar
Alicia.Daguiar@heartandstroke.ca
647-426-8410