A 79-mile trek with a $79M goal for women’s health research

An orthopedic surgeon and a leading aging research institute are launching a $79 million campaign aimed at closing longstanding gaps in women’s health research. Dr. Vonda Wrigth and the California-based Buck Institute for Research on Aging’s “Move the Mountain” initiative will fund research on women’s aging, including ovarian biology, menopause and musculoskeletal health. Wright, who is also based in California, plans to complete a 79-mile mountain endurance challenge, with organizers seeking to raise $1 million for every mile to establish the Vonda Wright Women’s Health Foundation at the Buck Institute. “We cannot solve problems we have never adequately studies,” Wright says. “The truth is the data does not exist because the research was never funded at the scale women deserve.”