News
The forgotten feminists: Why older women are still being left behind and what we can do about it
By Ruth Healey, President of Soroptimist International Great Britain and Ireland (SIGBI).
As the world population ages, an uncomfortable truth is emerging: Women over 50 face a double barrier in the workplace.
Older women continue to be trapped at the crossroads of ageism and gender inequality.
Nowhere is this more evident than in leadership roles – both within the workplace, where experienced and capable older women remain underrepresented and overlooked, and beyond it, where older women contribute significantly through paid and unpaid work.
Across all areas of society, the contributions of older women are too often invisible.
A recent report from Age International warns that older women are underrepresented in data and are, therefore, being sidelined. Especially in the decisions that affect them most.
It’s 2025 — supposedly one of the best times to be alive. Yet, even at the heart of the Information Age, crucial data and representation are still missing — and older women continue to pay the price.
From national strategies and workplace policies to social care systems and even annual UK budget statements, older women are being overlooked.
Without urgent action, these gaps will only widen as populations continue to age. But where do we start?
The Problem Expanded
There is a severe lack of representation of older women in the workplace – a gap often overlooked in diversity and inclusion efforts.
While progress has been made on gender and age separately, the unique challenges and contributions of older women remain largely ignored and rarely reflected.
Despite their skills and experience, older women are often overlooked for promotions and leadership roles, held back by biased stereotypes about adaptability and retirement.
The worse part of this? Older women, like me, are used to it. Women face ageism at every age, but the older you get, the worse you feel it.
And, in the workplace, it’s often masked with phrases like “fresh ideas.”
Maybe ageing comes with certain realities. But if that’s true, why are older men seen as wise, while older women are dismissed as outdated or difficult?
Too often, women quietly accept this as the way things are. They carry on, blending into the background.
But we need role models. We need representation. At every age.
Without visible older women in leadership, sexual harassment, hostile work environments and subtle biases will persist.
Access to powerful, capable female leaders must become normal – not the exception. And not a stereotype.
What Happens When Female Leaders Remain Unseen
Research shows that women are the primary victims of age discrimination in hiring which means they are driven out of the workplace earlier than men.
Older women are often pushed into insecure, low-paid, or part-time work, whether by necessity or because full-time, career-advancing roles are increasingly out of reach.
This not only limits their economic independence but also perpetuates the gender pension gap, leaving many financially vulnerable in later life.
Before that, women generally earn less than men at every stage of their careers.
And, by the age of 65, fewer than one in three women remain in employment.
How Can We Change This?
In the workplace small actions can make an immense impact but it’s businesses that must commit to real, measurable change.
Education is key. Companies need to tackle ageism through training, mentorship, and resource groups that support older workers, especially older women.
Despite being widespread, ageism is often easily ignored. Around 92% of companies worldwide don’t include age in their diversity strategies. This must change.
Performance appraisals should focus on skills and achievements, not age. Not gender.
Gradual retirement options would also help by offering older workers greater flexibility. It would help retain valuable experience while ensuring reasonable adjustments are made to support their needs.
Recognising and challenging age bias must become standard practice. Employers also need to address ‘lookism’ – where appearance unfairly affects perceptions of ability.
Work-life balance must be cultivated for employees at every stage of life, not just early career workers.
Above all, workplace focus must shift firmly to skills and experience.
Unconscious bias, or even conscious bias, won’t be unpicked overnight but workplaces must prioritise gender impact assessments across all age groups, with particular focus on older women.
A gender impact assessment is crucial for identifying and addressing how policies, programmes, or decisions affect people differently based on gender.
It can spot hidden inequalities, promote fairness, better decision-making, empower the voices of women, girls and gender-diverse groups, prevent widening gaps, and ultimately drive economic growth and innovation.
Why Supporting Older Women Strengthens The Workplace
Creating truly inclusive, multi-generational workplaces isn’t just fair. It’s vital for business resilience, talent retention, and future success.
Older women can provide younger women in the workplace with mentorship and guidance, offering diverse perspectives and new skills, while fostering stronger teamwork and workplace equality.
Ultimately, workplaces need to be inclusive environments that promote gender and age equality.
They create the conditions to empower younger women to aspire to leadership positions without age-related barriers.
Because when every generation of women is supported to thrive, organisations – and society as a whole – stand to benefit.
AI may help speed breast cancer diagnosis for high-risk women after abnormal mammograms, a study suggests.
Women with abnormal mammograms often wait weeks to learn whether they have breast cancer.
Researchers at UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley said an AI-guided workflow could help reduce that wait by quickly identifying those most likely to have the disease. Some women could move from imaging to evaluation, and sometimes biopsy, in a single day.
Dr Maggie Chung, first author of the study, said: “This is a really an exciting time.
“This moves us closer to personalised care, where we can tailor a plan so that each patient gets the right intervention at the right time.”
The study used an open-source AI model called Mirai.
The model was trained on hundreds of thousands of mammograms linked to patients’ cancer outcomes.
A mammogram is an X-ray scan of the breast used to look for signs of cancer. A biopsy involves taking a small tissue sample to test for disease.
The AI tool is designed to detect subtle patterns in screening mammograms and predict a woman’s cancer risk.
Researchers at UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley applied the model to more than 4,100 screening mammograms at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center.
Mirai identified 525 women, about 12.7 per cent of screened patients, as high risk.
Those patients could receive an interpretation of their mammograms immediately after the scan and have additional diagnostic imaging for suspicious areas on the same day.
Some women who needed biopsies were also able to have them on the same day.
The researchers said Mirai reduced the wait time for diagnostic evaluation from several weeks to about an hour.
For women who were ultimately diagnosed with breast cancer, it reduced the average wait for biopsy from more than two months to fewer than 10 days.
The researchers stressed that Mirai does not replace radiologists or make diagnoses on its own.
Instead, it acts as a triage tool to help physicians identify the patients who can benefit most from accelerated care.
The team analysed more than 114,000 archival mammograms before launching the programme, to ensure the model would capture enough high-risk patients without overloading the clinic with too many expedited evaluations.
The researchers said they hope AI will support a more personalised approach to breast cancer screening tailored to each patient’s breast cancer risk.
Chung said: “Right now, many women follow the same screening schedule but their individual risk can be very different.
“AI risk assessment gives us the chance to identify the women most likely to benefit from expedited care and get them what they need.”
Adam Yala, senior author of the study and a data scientist at UC Berkeley, said: “This is a powerful example of how AI can be a collaborative partner for physicians.
“It shows how we can improve care when we bring clinicians and data scientists together to design these systems.”
Women with primary infertility may face a higher risk of early menopause and reach it about a year earlier, a study suggests.
The findings suggest women with primary infertility may be more likely to enter menopause before the age of 45.
The increased risk appeared most notable among women with unexplained infertility or a history of endometriosis.
Dr Stephanie Faubion, medical director for The Menopause Society, said: “This study shows that women with primary infertility, specifically those with unexplained infertility or a history of endometriosis, were at risk for early menopause.
“Given that early menopause is linked to adverse long-term health consequences, these women may benefit from counselling that they are at risk of early menopause.
“This will allow them to monitor for early menopause and to seek treatment with hormone therapy, if indicated.”
Early menopause is usually defined as menopause before age 45, while premature menopause is menopause before age 40.
Women who experience menopause earlier may face symptoms for longer and have a higher risk of long-term health problems.
These can include cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and neurocognitive disorders. Osteoporosis weakens bones, while neurocognitive disorders affect memory, thinking or brain function.
The study, highlighted by The Menopause Society, involved nearly 700 people, roughly half of whom had been diagnosed with primary infertility.
It found that women with a history of primary infertility underwent natural menopause about one year earlier than those without such a history.
Researchers found no association between infertility and premature menopause.
Infertility affects around one in six people globally and can have consequences beyond family planning.
Previous research has linked infertility with higher rates of cancer and cardiovascular disease, although causes vary and may involve genetic, hormonal, in-utero or lifestyle factors.
In-utero factors are influences that occur while a baby is developing in the womb.
Earlier studies looking at links between infertility and early or premature menopause have produced mixed results, with some not accounting for different types of infertility.
The new study suggested that women with unexplained infertility or a history of endometriosis may have an increased risk of early menopause.
Endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows elsewhere in the body. It can cause pain, heavy periods and fertility problems.
Known risk factors for early or premature menopause include tobacco use, low body mass index, not having given birth and starting periods at a younger age.
Women who have had more childbirths and those with a history of oral contraceptive use have previously been linked to later menopause.
The researchers said women with primary infertility may benefit from additional counselling because of the systemic and long-term health effects of early menopause.
They also said women should be encouraged to seek evaluation and treatment if they experience a new loss of menstrual cycles.
A non-profit has launched an endometriosis documentary featuring Amy Schumer and Marilyn Monroe as it pushes for changes in how the condition is treated and understood.
The Endometriosis Collective has launched to change how endometriosis is researched, treated and understood, starting with a documentary featuring stories from people including Amy Schumer and Marilyn Monroe.
The feature-length documentary, “End of the Cycle”, will premiere in New York on Tuesday, and The Endometriosis Collective is making the film free to stream online.
Schumer, a comedian, writer and actor, has previously spoken of how endometriosis left her “on the floor in pain, vomiting from the pain, the pain that nobody can see.”
Schumer is one of several celebrities featured in the documentary. Other contributors include dancer Julianne Hough, Olympic medallist Brittany Brown and actors Janel Parrish and Folake Olowofoyeku.
The Endometriosis Collective timed the documentary premiere to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Marilyn Monroe’s birth.
Monroe, who died in 1962, starred in films such as “Some Like It Hot” and “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.”
According to a biography published in 1985, Monroe’s endometriosis was so severe that it destroyed her marriages, her wish for children, her career and ultimately her life.
The Endometriosis Collective said the documentary shares newly uncovered information about Monroe’s experience with endometriosis.
The non-profit said the information connects Monroe’s story to the experiences of women across generations, highlighting how far awareness, research and care still have to go.
A representative of the Marilyn Monroe Estate said: “By sharing this part of her story through ‘End of the Cycle,’ we hope to honour her legacy in a way that brings visibility to endometriosis, encourages more open dialogue and helps inspire the research needed to create change.”
As part of the premiere, The Endometriosis Collective is holding a panel discussion.
Schumer, Brown and Olowofoyeku, the documentary’s co-directors Sammy Jaye and Soraya Simi, and medical experts are due to be part of the premiere.
AbbVie’s Orilissa and Sumitomo Pharma’s Myfembree are among the approved drugs for endometriosis pain.
Hough, one of the participants in the documentary, starred in an Orilissa campaign in 2017.
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