International Women’s Day 2026: Advancing Rights, Justice and Action in Pain Research and Care

On 8 March 2026, International Women’s Day calls for renewed commitment to rights, justice and action for all women and girls. The UN theme reminds us that gender equality requires more than recognition — it requires dismantling structural barriers, closing data gaps, and ensuring equitable access to health and care.

Women experience chronic pain more frequently than men and are disproportionately affected by conditions such as migraine, osteoarthritis, low back pain, widespread pain, irritable bowel syndrome and painful diabetic neuropathy. Yet disparities in diagnosis, treatment and research attention persist.

These differences reflect complex biological mechanisms, but also psychosocial influences, gender norms and potential bias in research design and clinical assessment. Ensuring justice in pain care means critically examining how we measure pain, how we interpret patients’ experiences, and how inclusive our research frameworks truly are.

Significant knowledge gaps also remain regarding pain in non-binary, transgender and gender-diverse populations — an area that demands greater visibility and scientific attention.

On International Women’s Day 2026, EFIC reaffirms its commitment to advancing rights, justice and action in pain research and care. Through inclusive science, equitable clinical practice and sustained advocacy across Europe, we can help ensure that all women and girls — and all gender-diverse people — receive the recognition, respect and evidence-based care they deserve.

Upcoming Webinar

As part of International Women’s Day, EFIC will host the webinar From Picture Books to Practice: Gendered Pain Beliefs and Biopsychosocial Health Across the Lifespan on 2 March 2026, 10:00 (CET) in Brussels.
The session will explore how gender stereotypes shape pain beliefs from early childhood to adulthood, combining evidence from cultural research on children’s picture books with epidemiological data on pain, stress and mental well-being, and highlighting important gender-specific psychosocial patterns, particularly in women.
The two expert presentations will be followed by a joint Q&A on what these findings mean for research, clinical practice and more gender-responsive pain care.