Driv - Center for Women's Health Research
Driv - Center for Women’s Health Research – is a driving force for women’s health and stands behind research that makes a difference. Through collaboration between the university, primary healthcare services and specialist healthcare services, and in partnership with the University of Bergen, Haukeland University Hospital, Haraldsplass Deaconess Hospital, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences and the City of Bergen, the center brings together and strengthens leading research environments in biomedical and translational research, clinical research and public health research.
About the research centre
Driv – Center for Women's Health Research aims to promote research that helps eliminate gender-based disparities in the healthcare system. The purpose of the research is to ensure that all aspects of women’s health are understood, treated, and prioritized on an equal footing with other health areas.
For us, women’s health encompasses a broad range of issues, including diseases that affect only women, diseases that affect women more often than men, and diseases that manifest differently in women than in men.
DRIV - Forskning som forandrer kvinnehelse
Hva vet vi egentlig om kvinnehelse, og hvor er kunnskapshullene fortsatt store? I denne filmen får du et nært og inspirerende innblikk i arbeidet ved Driv - Senter for kvinnehelseforskning.
Her møter du forskere som på tvers av fagsøylene samfunnsmedisin, translasjonell forskning, biomedisin, klinisk forskning, arbeider målrettet for å styrke kunnskapsgrunnlaget om kvinners helse.
Sammen utfordrer de etablerte sannheter, løfter frem oversette problemstillinger og utvikler ny innsikt som kan gi bedre forebygging, mer treffsikker behandling og mer likeverdige helsetjenester.
Forskning på kvinnehelse handler ikke bare om kvinner, det handler om livskvalitet, rettferdighet og bærekraftige helsetjenester for hele samfunnet.
Se filmen og bli inspirert av hvordan forskning kan skape reell endring.
Our Research Focus
Researchers affiliated with Driv conduct groundbreaking research on women's health in both primary and specialist healthcare services. The research is interdisciplinary and focuses on core areas such as clinical research, translational research, biomedical research, as well as research in public health and primary healthcare.
Read more about our core areas of research:
Official partners
DRIVpodden - Fersk Forskning for Bedre Kvinnehelse
Hvordan står det til med kvinnehelsen i Norge – og hva sier den ferskeste forskningen? Det får du svar på i DRIVpodden, en ny podkastserie i regi av DRIV – Senter for kvinnehelseforskning ved Universitetet i Bergen.
I liveopptak fra studio ved Læringslaben, UiB, samtaler Marion Solheim, kommunikasjonsrådgiver ved Det medisinske fakultet, med forskere tilknyttet DRIV. Samtalene gir et aktuelt og forskningsbasert innblikk i kvinnehelse – på tvers av fagfelt, diagnoser og livsfaser.
I denne episoden møter vi Stian Knappskog, professor ved Universitetet i Bergen og ekspert på brystkreftforskning. Han deler innsikt fra både egen og internasjonal forskning, og snakker blant annet om utviklingen av persontilpasset behandling og hvorfor prognosene for brystkreftpasienter er bedre enn noen gang før.
Se og hør Marion Solheim og Stian Knappskog i en inspirerende studiosamtale om den banebrytende, internasjonale forskningen på brystkreft som foregår ved Universitetet i Bergen.
Podcasts
HealthTalk Podcasten: Kreftkongressen ESMO Gynaecological Cancers (external link). 22.02.2023, Camilla Krakstad
Radcliffe cardiology: Sex Differences in Hypertension: Pharmacological Treatment (external link), 22.11.2022. Eva Gerdts
Featured
Events
Projects
Translational research
Driv has multiple affiliated researchers who does exciting work through research projects and other initiatives in translational research.
Find projects and other initiatives in translational research
Biomedical research
Driv has multiple affiliated researchers who does exciting work through research projects and other initiatives in biomedical research.
Clinical research
Driv has multiple affiliated researchers who does exciting work through research projects and other initiatives in clinical research.
Public Health Research
Driv has multiple affiliated researchers who does exciting work through research projects and other initiatives in public health and primary care research.
Find projects and other initiatives in public health and primary care research
Trond Mohn projects
Early embryonic epimutations and female cancer
Principal Investigator: Stian Knappskog, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
This project aims to explore how epigenetic changes occurring during fetal development may be a cause of aggressive cancers such as triple-negative breast cancer. A recent breakthrough in the field has shown that 5–10% of healthy women have normal cells with epimutations scattered like a “mosaic” throughout the body. This significantly increases the risk of developing triple-negative breast cancer. The project could open new research areas beyond breast cancer, as the results may also be relevant for other cancer types – and potentially for other women-specific symptoms due to similar epigenetic changes.
Young women with premature menopause – call for action to improve diagnostics and improve fertility
Principal Investigator: Eystein Husebye, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
Premature menopause and hormonal disturbances—referred to in medical terms as POI (Premature Ovarian Insufficiency)—affect 3% of women under the age of 40. In addition to infertility, consequences include increased risk of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, dementia, and autoimmune disorders. Hormone therapy can alleviate menopausal symptoms associated with POI, but no treatment currently exists to restore or improve fertility. The cause remains unknown in most women, and the disease mechanisms are under-researched. This project, through interdisciplinary national and international collaboration, aims to gain unique insights into this condition, uncover sex-specific characteristics of the immune system, and develop new diagnostic tools to help preserve fertility.
Safe Treatment for Women needing Antiseizure medications – a multimodal translational and epidemiological approach
Principal Investigator: Marte-Helene Bjørk, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
The aim of this project is to close knowledge gaps and improve safety for fertile women using antiepileptic drugs. These medications are used to treat epilepsy, bipolar disorder, headaches, pain, and other neurological and psychiatric conditions commonly affecting women. However, if taken during pregnancy, these drugs can lead to congenital malformations and neurodevelopmental disorders. The project is divided into three work packages: evaluating the safety of antiepileptic medications, identifying markers of fetal harm, and validating epigenetic markers in a large multinational cohort.
Rethinking Ovarian Cancer: Developing Diagnostic and Functional Tools and Designing Innovative Multimodal Treatment Strategies
Principal Investigator: Line Bjørge, Haukeland University Hospital
Around 500 women in Norway are diagnosed with ovarian cancer annually, but survival rates are low, and most patients experience relapse. To improve immunotherapy treatment, a better understanding of tumor variation and the suppressive tumor microenvironment is essential. This project aims to enhance our knowledge of the immunobiology of ovarian cancer, develop tools for identifying biomarkers and testing immunotherapies, and establish methods for combining surgery with immunotherapy. The project consists of three components: developing personalized immune profiling tools, modeling tumor interactions to test immunotherapies, and developing a local immunotherapy method using CAR-T cells. Results from preclinical tests will form the basis for a clinical program to be launched by the end of the project period.
Publications
Loss of vimentin expression in preoperative biopsies independently predicts poor prognosis, lymph node metastasis and recurrence in endometrial cancer
Loss of vimentin expression in preoperative biopsies independently predicts poor prognosis, lymph node metastasis and recurrence in endometrial cancer
Peripheral blood leukocyte signatures as biomarkers in relapsed ovarian cancer patients receiving combined anti-CD73/anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy in arm A of the NSGO-OV-UMB1/ENGOT-OV30 trial
Peripheral blood leukocyte signatures as biomarkers in relapsed ovarian cancer patients receiving combined anti-CD73/anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy in arm A of the NSGO-OV-UMB1/ENGOT-OV30 trial
Asthma and Asthma Symptoms Associated with Endometriosis and Dysmenorrhea in a Nordic-Baltic Population
Asthma and Asthma Symptoms Associated with Endometriosis and Dysmenorrhea in a Nordic-Baltic Population
Lipødem. Klinisk oversikt. Tidsskriftet 2025:145;8
Denne kliniske oversikten presenterer diagnostikk og behandling av lipødem basert på klinisk erfaring og publisert internasjonal konsensus,
People
Centre manager
Anette Susanne Bøe Wolff Leader
Centre members
Nina Grytten Torkildsen Centre coordinator
Ida Kristine Sangnes Administrative resource from Haraldsplass Deaconess Hospital
Helen Koldal Administrative resource from Bergen municipality
Steering committee
Marit Bakke Chair, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
Clara Beate Gram Gjesdal Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Haukeland University Hospital
Petter Lave Thornam Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Haraldsplass Deaconess Hospital
Kjell A. Wolff Director of Municipal Services, Department for Elderly, Health, and Care, Bergen Municipality
Marjolein Memelink Iversen Vice Dean for Research, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
Academic Strategic Council
Silje Skrede Chair, Professor, and Vice Dean for Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
Vibeke Vold Research Director, Haukeland University Hospital
Karl Johan Tronstad Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
Camilla Krakstad Professor and Head of the Bergen Gynecological Cancer Research Group, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
Jone Trovik Senior Consultant at the Women's Clinic and Professor, Haukeland University Hospital and Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
Inger Haukenes Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen, and Senior Researcher II at NORCE
Eva Gerdts Senior Consultant and Professor, Department of Cardiology, Haukeland University Hospital and Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen
Ida Sangnes Head of Research, Haraldsplass Deaconess Hospital
Trond Egil Hansen Municipal Chief Medical Officer, Bergen Municipality
Linn Marie Sørbye Associate Professor, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
Everline Konyo Mjømen User representative
Contact
The public, researchers, users of healthcare services and research results, politicians, media, and others seeking information about the center or contact with researchers can reach out to Nina Torkildsen, nina.torkildsen@uib.no, tel: 944 87 372
- Phone number
- +47944 87 372
- Emails
- nina.torkildsen@uib.no