News

Award Winning Podcast

20 December 2022

‘Unheard of – The hidden voice of Endometriosis ’ the podcast series co-hosted by Danielle Perro (Postdoctoral Researcher in Epidemiology) and Magda Mareckova (DPhil student) has been recognised by the Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, with a Public Engagement with Research Project Award.

New appointment at Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

20 October 2022

Congratulations to Manu Vatish, Professor of Obstetrics & Consultant Obstetrician who has been appointed as the new Deputy Director for Maternal and Child Health Discovery at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Oxford gets £122m funding for healthcare research

20 October 2022

Health and care research in Oxford is to receive £122 million in government funding over the next five years to improve diagnosis, treatment and care for NHS patients.

What is the impact of heavy menstrual bleeding on female health and well-being?

12 October 2022

Many of us have no idea whether or not our period is “normal”. It’s no wonder, since not only is everyone different, but the stigma still keeps many of us from asking questions or discussing what we go through every month with friends and family. Principal Investigator Prof Suzannah Williams and DPhil student Tomi Adeniran explore what heavy periods can mean in their article published in The Conversation.

Maternal fat metabolism in pregnancy and fetal abdominal growth influence child weight

26 August 2022

A new study, led by researchers at the Nuffield Department of Women's & Reproductive Health, University of Oxford, in collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley, USA, published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology identifies, as early as the 5th month of pregnancy, patterns of fetal abdominal growth associated with maternal lipid metabolites that track newborn growth, adiposity and development into childhood.

New Professor of Obstetrics Title

22 August 2022

Enormous well done to our new Professor Sally Collins - she was conferred the title of Professor of Obstetrics by the University's Medical Sciences Division Board.

INTERCOVID Study cited in the New Yorker

17 August 2022

Fantastic news for our team who have been working on the INTERCOVID Study, which launched in April 2020. This week on 12th August 2022, the research findings cited in the New Yorker! This work was a combined effort from 43 institutions in 18 countries and involved more than two thousand pregnant women.

Women's Health Strategy for England Launched

28 July 2022

The government has published the first ever Women's Health Strategy for England to tackle the gender health gap. Menopause, Endometriosis, Contraception and Fertility treatment are highlighted as some of the top issues women have asked for action on. The Nuffield Department of Women's & Reproductive Health welcome and fully support this bold and exciting strategy to help improve the health of millions of women in England.

Pregnancy is more likely with urine tests and timed intercourse

11 July 2022

Dr Tatjana Gibbons leads study that suggests a woman's chance of conceiving is improved by using urine tests to detect the optimum time for intercourse, but further research is still needed to assess whether timed intercourse via any ovulation detection method creates a difference in live births and pregnancy rates.

Prof Christian Becker wins Clinical Science Award at ESHRE 2022

8 July 2022

Congratulations to Professor Christian Becker who was presented with a Clinical Science Award for best oral presentation at the ESHRE 38th Annual Meeting in Milan, Italy this week.

PhD Student of the Year 2022 Winner!

28 June 2022

The winners of the Postgrad Awards 2022 have been announced and we are delighted to share that our DPhil student Josephine Agyeman-Duah has won PhD Student of the Year. The award recognises the individual PhD student who has become an excellent and inquisitive researcher, who is an integral part of their research group, someone who encourages and supports more junior members of the team, and works alongside the research community more widely.

Josephine Agyeman-Duah wins at the Oxford Student Union Awards 2022

22 June 2022

Huge congratulations to Josephine Agyeman-Duah, DPhil student in the Kennedy group who won a Race Equality award at the Oxford Student Union Awards 2022.

Oxford's largest ever study into Varicose veins shows need for surgery is linked to genetics

14 June 2022

Varicose veins are a very common manifestation of chronic venous disease, affecting over 30% of the population in Western countries. In America, chronic venous disease affects over 11 million men and 22 million women aged 40–80 years old. Left untreated it can escalate to multiple health complications including leg ulcers and ultimately amputations. A new international study by Oxford researchers published on 2nd June 2022 in Nature Communications establishes for the first time, a critical genetic risk score to predict the likelihood of patients suffering with Varicose veins to require surgery, as well as pointing the way towards potential new therapies.

New Associate Professor Titles

9 June 2022

We're celebrating two new Associate Professors in our department!

New imaging study could make diagnosing endometriosis quicker, more accurate and reduce the need for invasive surgery.

6 June 2022

A new research study launches to investigate whether a 20-minute imaging scan can detect the most common types of endometriosis, which currently require surgery to diagnose.

Oxford researchers part of major UK initiative to understand chronic pain

13 May 2022

Oxford pain researchers are playing a major role in a new multi-million pound research programme launched by a consortium of funders, including UKRI, Versus Arthritis, Eli Lilly and the Medical Research Foundation.

Dawes-Redman Education awarded funds from Huntleigh Healthcare

12 May 2022

The Dawes-Redman Education programme which offers virtual CTG Analysis training sessions to Obstetric consultants, antenatal and student midwives has received generous funds from Huntleigh Healthcare for the next 3 years.

AIMDay in Women's Health 2022 - Read the Blogs

10 May 2022

On 22nd March 2022, The University of Oxford hosted an AIMday in Women's Health at St Anne's College in Oxford. The key objective was to match the needs of organisations for new knowledge with academic expertise, with the ultimate goal of improving healthcare diagnoses & treatments for women and reproductive health.

Endometriosis: pandemic backlog risks making it even harder for women to get help

27 April 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate and devastating impact on women’s health, according to a report from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

Diagnostic test could offer new hope for ME/CFS patients

13 April 2022

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis /Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a chronic condition without a diagnostic test and some 80 - 90% of patients remain un-diagnosed. A new paper published in Frontiers in Medicine outlines how having a diagnostic test could greatly help both patients and medics.