Seoul National University Bundang Hospital Opens Korea's First 'Sex Differences Medicine Research Institute'

Bundang Seoul National University Hospital announced on the 6th that it has opened Korea's first 'Sex Differences in Medicine Research Institute' and held a commemorative academic forum.

Opening ceremony of the Gender Medicine Research Institute at Bundang Seoul National University Hospital. [Photo by Bundang Seoul National University Hospital]

The inaugural director of the institute is Professor Kim Nayoung of the Department of Gastroenterology, a pioneer in the field of sex differences in medicine, who was the first in the world to publish a textbook on sex differences in gastroenterology through the international publisher Springer.

Sex differences in medicine is a field that deeply studies the differences between men and women in health and disease from various perspectives, including biological sex and social gender. Its purpose is to advance medicine to provide more suitable treatments for everyone according to their sex and gender characteristics.

In Western countries, since the 2010s, leading institutions worldwide such as Stanford University and Mayo Clinic in the United States, and Charit? Hospital in Germany have established research institutes on sex differences in medicine, and related research has been steadily conducted. In contrast, in Asia, including Korea, attention to this field has only recently increased. This is also the first time a research institute on sex differences in medicine has been established in Korea.

Director Kim Nayoung said, "Sex differences in medicine is not a field only for women, but its ultimate goal is to overcome bias so that men and women can receive the most appropriate treatment for themselves." She added, "I will do my best to apply sex differences throughout the entire research process in each clinical area and contribute to realizing patient-tailored precision medicine." She also emphasized, "If we solve the origins of sex differences through not only independent research for academic development but also joint research with leading global institutions and interdisciplinary research with basic sciences and humanities and social sciences, it will ultimately become a foundation for the overall advancement of medicine."

The academic forum held alongside the opening ceremony proceeded in the order of ▲ Introduction to sex differences in medicine and the direction of the research institute's activities (Director Kim) ▲ Global trends in sex differences in medicine (Professor Baek Heeyoung, Professor Emeritus at Seoul National University) ▲ Sexual dimorphism in animal experiments (Professor Sung Jekyung, Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Seoul National University).

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