Older women rank second in EU for heart disease

OLDER Irish women have the second highest rate of heart disease of all women in the EU, a study by the Older Women’s Network Ireland has found.

The report, which gives a comprehensive profile of women over 65, warns there is a serious need for further research on cardiovascular health as there is considerable under-funding in response to a major cause of illness and death among older women.

About twice as many women die each year from CVD than from all cancers combined, it states. It also found three quarters of women diagnosed with breast cancer are over 50 and 85% of deaths due to breast cancer occur in women over the age of 50.