Global Women's Health Index digital media kit
EMBARGOED: 12:01AM AEST, WEDNESDAY, JULY 22, 2026

MEDIA ALERT                   

EMBARGOED: 12:01AM AEST, WEDNESDAY, JULY 22, 2026

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Australian women's health declining across
key measures, landmark global report reveals
Breast cancer rates rising among younger women
as national screening gap widens​

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Fewer than one-in-four (23 per cent) Australian women underwent preventive cancer screening last year, according to new national findings from the world's most comprehensive annual survey tracking women’s health and wellbeing.1

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Conducted by Gallup, and set for release next Wednesday, July 22, 2026, the Hologic Year 5 Global Women's Health Index examines women's health across five dimensions – Preventive Care, Individual Health, Emotional Health, Basic Needs and Opinions of Health and Safety – across 144 countries and territories. The Index shows Australia is moving in the wrong direction, scoring 59 out of 100, above the global average of 54.1,2

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Other Year 5 Index findings include:

• All but one preventive screening rate recorded in Australia has fallen below Year 1 levels;1

• More than one-in-five Australian women have struggled to afford food in the past year, and one-in-nine have been unable to afford shelter – contributing to a drop in the Index's Basic Needs score from 92 to 84 in five years, one of the steepest declines across all dimensions.1

• Australian women are also more stressed, worried, angry and sad than they were in Year 1 – with 52 per cent reporting feeling stressed for much of the previous day, and 41 per cent experiencing worry.1

 

Launch of the findings will coincide with the screening of Conquering Breast Cancer – a new Australian documentary featuring survivors, advocates and clinicians – at Event Cinemas George Street, Sydney, on July 22,3 which breast cancer clinicians, advocacy group representatives and patients will attend. Also playing throughout winter at cinemas nation-wide, the documentary portrays the human cost behind the data – exploring delayed diagnosis, survivorship, recurrence, and the advocates driving change.

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To learn more about the Australian findings from The Global Women’s Health Index and Conquering Breast Cancer, tee up an interview.