Ireland could become a global leader in technology, research, and innovation focused on women's health, a new report into the area of FemTech has claimed.

The 'FemTech in Ireland' study, carried out over two years, found the sector attracts more female entrepreneurs.

It also examined how improved support for women's health innovation could address health inequities.

FemTech is the term used to describe products and technology services aimed at addressing women's health issues.

"One of the things that has happened in the last couple of years is there's a realisation that for a number of historical reasons, including excluding women from clinical trials, that we need to do more research into conditions that affect women only," said Dr Tanya Mulcahy, Director of Health Innovation Hub Ireland. Dr Mulcahy is also founder of FemTech Ireland.

"We've also found that there are conditions that affect women differently to men, but we haven't done the research to understand that.

"If we do that, we'll find more clues to creating better solutions for both women and men.

"But importantly, there are so many conditions that affect women that we really need to address, and we haven't.

By 2027 the sector is projected to be worth €60bn, but most research funding and investment currently doesn't target female-specific health conditions.

The report also forecasts the global FemTech industry—technology focused on women’s health—is expected to be worth over $97bn by 2030.

The sector attracts more female entrepreneurs, with 75% of FemTech companies being founded by women.

"The women who come into us with new ideas and new solutions, they're passionate about this because they've experienced conditions themselves, realise there's no solutions out there, or they know someone, a family member that's experienced something that's affected them," said Dr Mulcahy.

The report was compiled through the Health Innovation Hub Ireland.

Since launching in 2022, the Hub has supported over 30 Irish start-ups developing products to improve women’s health—from wearable tech to track menopause symptoms, to smarter devices for pelvic health and fertility.

The report makes a number of recommendations to help transform the sector, including:

· Specific funding for research into women’s health conditions;

· More support for Irish start-ups developing women’s health solutions;

· A national FemTech space where innovators can work with patients and doctors;

· Changes to how medical research is done, to include and understand women better.

"We are witnessing extraordinary advances in healthcare technology and innovation", said Professor John R Higgins, PI of Health Innovation Hub Ireland and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University College Cork and Cork University Maternity Hospital.

"In women’s health however, a longstanding gap in research has meant that these innovations have not always translated into meaningful solutions," said Prof Higgins.

"This gap in evidence directly impacts the development of technologies. Now is the time to bridge that divide—with focused funding, targeted research, and innovation supports."

Top pic: Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and Dr Tanya Mulcahy