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Women with endometriosis, a medical condition in which uterine tissue grows outside the uterus, have a 20 per cent increased risk of heart attack or stroke compared with women who do not have this condition. This has been demonstrated by Eva Havers-Borgersen, MD, PhD fellow from the Heart Centre at Copenhagen’s university hospital, Rigshospitalet in a major new registry-based study involving almost 300,000 women. One in ten women of reproductive age have endometriosis, so this link has implications for many women.

Dr Havers-Borgersen previously demonstrated a link between preeclampsia – a serious pregnancy complication that causes high blood pressure – and cardiovascular disease, meaning any condition involving the heart or blood vessels, in a study that spurred her interest in gender-specific risk factors.

“The more I delved into the link between women’s diseases and cardiovascular disease, the more astonished I was by how little research is done in this area, and also how underdiagnosed women’s diseases are,” she explains.

It was like embarking on a whole new chapter in cardiology and led Havers-Borgersen to continue along this research track in recent years as well, allowing her to add more articles to her long list of scientific publications within her other two core areas: infective endocarditis and congenital heart disease.

For this, and other qualities such as skilled dissemination of research to medical and wider audiences alike, attentive supervision of students, and her empathic way with patients, she is among the recipients of the Lundbeck Foundation’s Talent Prize 2024.

Collaborative and independent research

A career in medicine was on the cards for Havers-Borgersen ever since she first opened a children’s picture book on the human body. And her interest in the body’s circulatory system dates back to when she was an elite tennis player. Later on, as a medical student at the Heart Centre, she found her medical specialty.

“Cardiology is very research-based. And there’s a constant drive to advance our skills as both clinicians and researchers. I find that very inspiring to be a part of,” she says.

“I’ve been very fortunate in connecting with people I could pursue collaborative research with, but who also allowed me to go it alone, following my own research directions.”

As stated, one of her particular interests is infective endocarditis, which is inflammation of the inner lining of the heart's chambers and valves. In this field, she can actually call herself an international expert, and has been invited to take part in a working group under The American Heart Association to write clinical recommendations for diagnostics and treatment of infective endocarditis in patients with pacemakers and other electronic heart implants.

Research in congenital heart disease, a collective term for defects in heart structure or function that are present at birth, is also high on her agenda.  “The patients are young and vulnerable. And their life expectancy is often reduced. So through targeted research for this group of patients, my dream is to be able to improve their quality of life and ultimately also their life expectancy.”

Women as a ‘special population’

For the time being, however, she is mainly focused on investigating the link between women’s diseases and cardiovascular disease.

And she admits that until she spotted the “gap” in the research, she was not particularly aware of gender-specific risk factors.

“I never asked a female cardiac patient if she had a history of preeclampsia or endometriosis. It just wasn’t part of my awareness, but in my opinion, we should be integrating this when we first meet the patients, and it should also be included in recommendations and guidelines,” she says.

At the major conference in cardiovascular medicine, the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress in London, one particular experience boosted her motivation.

“There was a session at the Congress on ‘special populations’ and one of these was ‘women’,” she recounts.

“Women make up half of the world's population, and yet we are put in this special category.”

She also noticed that both the presenters and attendees at the session were mainly women. Meaning that there is enough to address. Which is exactly what she is doing.

Dreams of her own cohort

Havers-Borgersen is currently involved in a study in collaboration with investigators from the obstetrics section at Rigshospitalet, where they are following a group of women with a history of preeclampsia to learn about their health going forward.

Her dream is to establish her own large cohort, meaning a large group of women she can observe over time.

“I would like to follow a group of young women to see the gender-specific medical conditions that affect them, meaning if they have women’s diseases like endometriosis or have a history of preeclampsia. And then follow them for many years to learn about the outcome for them.”

She also wants to investigate the possibility of preventing cardiovascular disease in women.

“I’m interested in researching what can be done to minimise their risk. Perhaps give them an anti-inflammatory medicine, because inflammation appears to be what drives many of these diseases.”

Havers-Borgersen has just submitted her PhD dissertation, and is looking forward to working as a clinical doctor next year.

“I enjoy doing research, but working in the clinic with patients is my main focus. And the aim of advancing my skills as a clinician is another thing that drives my research,” she says.

This is why she still wants to continue to do research. And in fact, she has decided that she will invest the research part of the prize of DKK 200,000 in taking leave to conduct research in parallel with her clinical work. The personal part of the prize, DKK 100,000 is also earmarked for matters of the heart.

“My partner proposed just two days before I received the award. So, that part of the prize will go towards our wedding.”