October brings two opportunities to talk about women’s health. Pink October, or Breast Cancer Awareness Month, invites us to support people affected by breast cancer and to learn about early detection. And then on the 18th October, World Menopause Day draws attention to another experience that touches women’s lives across the world. Both remind us how much can change when people have clear information, feel able to ask questions and know where to turn for support.
Breast cancer awareness is about more than wearing a pink ribbon. An estimated 2.4 million women worldwide were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2024. Behind that number are people living with a diagnosis, those adjusting to life after treatment, and those living with metastatic breast cancer, which has spread beyond the breast. Awareness can prompt us to notice changes, seek medical advice and learn about screening options where we live. Breast cancer can affect men too, although they account for around 0.5–1% of cases.1
World Menopause Day has its own important message. For most women, menopause is a natural stage of life, but its effects can be far from simple. Some women have few difficulties; others find that changes to sleep, mood, concentration or physical health, affect daily life. For women undergoing an early or induced menopause following surgery, radiotherapy or medical treatment, the symptoms are often much more severe. This year’s theme, chronic pain at midlife, highlights an experience that has too often been overlooked. Pain deserves to be heard and properly assessed, whether it is related to menopause, another health condition or several factors together.2
These October campaigns focus on different issues, but they highlight a wider need. Women’s health is shaped by experiences across the whole of life: periods and hormones, fertility and pregnancy, mental well-being, heart and bone health, menopause and healthy ageing. At every stage, people need information they can trust and support that takes their individual circumstances seriously.
For many people, the first step is a conversation. It might be asking a clinician about a new breast change, telling a manager that symptoms are affecting work, or asking a friend how they are coping. Those conversations become easier when accurate information is available and the response is curious and respectful. They are also why our services at HealthFirst reach beyond any single condition or awareness day.
A new home for women’s health at HealthFirst
This October, we are delighted to launch our women’s health webpages and a broader range of women’s health services. We have brought them together around a belief that guides our work: every woman deserves to feel heard.
As GPs, Dr Michelle Wright and Dr Mecky McNeil have spent years listening to women describe symptoms, concerns and questions that do not always fit neatly into a short appointment. Together with HealthFirst’s wider team of doctors, nurses and midwives, they bring clinical experience to education that is evidence based, understandable and relevant to everyday life. Dr Mecky has recently completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Menopause Medicine, adding to her work in health and performance coaching.
Our approach rests on four simple ideas: Understand. Advocate. Share. Thrive. Understanding your health gives you a stronger starting point. Advocating means feeling confident to ask questions and take part in decisions about your care. Sharing opens conversations that can reduce isolation and help others feel less alone. Thriving means having the support to live well in ways that matter to you.
We have seen what those conversations can make possible. At our MenoPower event in Geneva last year, women came together to learn, exchange experiences and speak openly about menopause. We will be running a similar MenoPower event in Vevey on 5th December this year. We also bring women’s health education into community groups, schools and workplaces, including Think Pink for breast cancer and menopause awareness sessions. A question raised in one session can travel further: into a conversation with a friend, a family member, a colleague or a healthcare professional.
Support for individuals workplaces schools and communities
The new webpages make it easier to explore what HealthFirst offers and find a starting point that fits. For individuals, we offer personalised education and coaching around women’s health, life transitions and healthy ageing.
Our coaching and lifestyle medicine approaches can help someone make sense of information, prepare questions for a healthcare appointment, or turn a health goal into changes that work in real life.
For employers, we offer awareness sessions, workshops and support for managers and HR teams. A workplace where people can discuss health concerns respectfully and find practical support benefits everyone.
For schools and community groups, our sessions create space for learning, questions and open conversation. Our aim in every setting is to share reliable knowledge without assuming that everyone’s experience, needs or choices will be the same.
October is a moment to raise awareness, but women need good information and support throughout the year. Whether you are looking for answers for yourself, hoping to support someone close to you, or considering what your organisation could do, we hope our new webpages offer a useful place to begin.
Explore HealthFirst’s women’s health services. We would love to start a conversation with you.
Resources
1. WHO breast cancer fact sheet July 2026
2. IMS World Menopause Day 2026
