Global Surgery and Women’s Health: Opportunities for Innovation

Women-specific surgical conditions represent a substantial and often under-recognised component of global surgical care. Conditions such as endometriosis, uterine fibroids, pelvic floor disorders, and obstetric surgical emergencies affect millions of women worldwide, contributing to chronic pain, infertility, preventable complications, and long-term disability.

Endometriosis affects approximately 190 million women and girls globally (around 1 in 10 of reproductive age) and is frequently diagnosed only after years of delay. Up to 70–80% of women develop uterine fibroids by age 50, making them one of the leading drivers of hysterectomy worldwide. Each year, nearly 300,000 women die from largely preventable maternal causes, many linked to conditions requiring timely surgical intervention. In many low- and middle-income settings, access to safe emergency obstetric surgery remains limited.

These realities highlight both the scale of the burden and the scale of the opportunity.

Frontier technologies are beginning to reshape women’s surgical care. Robotics now supports minimally invasive hysterectomy and complex pelvic procedures, while AI is being explored to enhance ultrasound interpretation, risk stratification, and early detection.

Innovation is also expanding in low-resource settings. AI-enabled decision support is supporting frontline providers, and context-appropriate devices are improving access to essential surgical care. Portable imaging, low-cost diagnostics, and digital mentorship are extending surgical capability beyond tertiary hospitals.

This forum will focus on both clinical need and innovation opportunity:

• Where is the burden of women’s surgical disease greatest?
• What diagnostic and surgical gaps remain?
• How are robotics, AI, imaging, and digital tools already being applied in women’s surgical care?
• Where is there potential for transformative impact particularly in underserved settings?

Bringing together surgeons, engineers, and global health leaders, the discussion will aim to inspire innovation that is not only technically advanced, but globally relevant and aligned with the realities of women’s health.