Gender Bias In Science

The Bias of the Sexes

If you’re a GCSE or A Level science student, you’ll know that sticking to the principles of fair and reliable scientific testing is extremely important (and not just when it comes to passing your exams). 

The principles dictate that all variables (other than the one independent variable) should be controlled (or kept constant) and that several repeats should be done. 

These are accepted rules that ensure that scientific studies and trials produce reliable results without bias - in other words, useful information. 

It’s also a given amongst scientists that results from one study cannot be generalised - for example, if we investigated the effect of temperature on the metabolic rate of larvae, we cannot use the results from that investigation to conclude anything about the effect of temperature on the metabolic rate of another organism, such as beetles.

But these rules have not always been followed...

You would think that the same principles should apply to scientific studies using humans, right? Well… this hasn’t always been the case.

There is a major factor that is often not taken into account in medical studies: sex.

Historically, medical studies (such as those involved in the development of drugs) have been sex-biased; they have been run by men, on men, for men. The reason often used to justify this? Male scientists deemed it too risky to jeopardise the reproductive capacity of women. 

Bizarrely, considering that women account for 99% of breast cancer cases in the UK, there have only even been studies on breast cancer involving only men, no women subjects! 

Why is this such a big problem? 

As A Level Biology students will know, the main purpose of most scientific studies in humans is for medical application - that is, to develop cures and treatments for disease. 

According to the principles of scientific testing, the results of studies carried out on men-only should only be applied to men and their medical treatment. 

However general consensus by professionals in the scientific and medical communities (themselves traditionally dominated by men) is that the results of male-only studies are universally applicable and therefore can be applied in the medical treatment of women. 

This is problematic, because women’s bodies are biologically different from men’s bodies in numerous ways. For example, women’s bones are arranged at different angles, and women have different levels of hormones compared to men (that change throughout the month) which have various effects on organ function and drug metabolism! 

An individual’s metabolism plays a major role in how a drug is processed and its resulting effect.

How have women been impacted by this bias? 

The serious lack of medical research and data on women means they have been more likely in the past to be misdiagnosed, to have adverse reactions to drugs that have not been tested on them or are given late/incorrect treatment for a variety of diseases and conditions.

In the late 1990s, 10 drugs were removed from the American drug market due to adverse side effects; 4 of those drugs were proven to produce more adverse side effects in women specifically. It was suggested that there was a lack of adequate testing on women in the clinical trials.

Women and heart disease

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a condition that interferes with the heart and the coronary arteries which supply blood to the heart muscle. It has commonly been thought of as a man’s disease, while in reality, heart disease is the single biggest killer of women globally. 

Despite this, a study investigating the effect of daily aspirin on the risk of heart disease included 22,071 men and 0 women. In another study that looked at the implications of dietary change and exercise for the prevention of heart disease, 13,000 men and 0 women were used.

In reality, heart disease is the single biggest killer of women globally. Women can often present different or atypical symptoms (compared to those recorded in male-only studies) such as anxiety, nausea and collapsing. 

Women are less likely to go to the hospital when they experience symptoms of a heart attack and when they go to the hospital they are 50% more likely to obtain a wrong initial diagnosis. They are also less likely to receive timely treatment such as drugs or stents which can lead to recovery. 

This may be due to the fact that more women seem to suffer from a particular type of heart attack that is more complicated to treat. The specific type of heart attack does not involve a physical blockage of the coronary arteries; if there is no blockage for the doctors to clear then it can be very difficult to treat.

What can we do to fix gender bias in science? 

Major medical advances have been made by scientists and doctors in the past 100 years. The drugs and treatments discovered have effectively saved countless women’s lives and will continue to do so. 

However, more needs to be done to ensure both sexes receive the highest quality of care possible. 

Research is being done to try and include more women in medical studies. The situation is improving, although some researchers have found that women are less willing to sign up for medical trials and studies. 

When both sexes are included in a study, the results for both sexes need to be analysed separately, to aid in understanding any differences between them. For example, by investigating the differences in anatomy between the sexes we have discovered that there are several sex-specific diseases that only affect one sex (such as testicular cancer for men and uterine cancer for women).

As students, teachers and future scientists we must: 

• Challenge the societal norms that dictate that ‘only women’ or ‘only men’ get certain diseases like heart disease

• Acknowledge that sex is an important variable that needs to be included and investigated in scientific studies

• Become more aware of our own biases, and how they might impact our beliefs and actions 

We want to hear your thoughts, opinions and questions on this important topic! Get in touch with the Save My Exams team via our social media channels: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter. 

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