Female Health Across the Tree of Life: the Intersection of Women's Health and Planetary Health

The leading causes of mortality and morbidity in women-from cardiovascular disease and mammary/ovarian cancers to infertility, sexual transmitted infections, and post-partum biobehavioral disorders-also impact female animals across the tree of life. This course explores the species-spanning and evolutionary origins of medical, surgical, and psychiatric illnesses emphasizing issues in women's health. Students develop skills in developing and analyzing phylogenetic models of a wide range of pathologies from mammary, ovarian, and endometrial cancer to heart failure, infertility, and osteoporosis. Mental health issues including post-partum depression are also placed in a broadly comparative and evolutionary context with this exploration of psychopathology in animals presented as an opportunity for students to examine the origins of human mental health stigma. Students gain in-depth exposure to one health and planetary health perspectives and a set of analytical tools they can apply to better understand the nature of health (women's and general) and disease when they enter medical school. For complete and current details about this Harvard Extension course, see the description in the DCE Course Search.