Sex differences in medicine

A sex-specific illness is an illness which tends to occur more frequently in individuals of a particular sex.

Sex-specific illnesses generally fall into one of three categories:

• sex-linked genetic illnesses
• diseases of parts of the reproductive system that are specific to that sex
• diseases with social causes that relate to the gender role expected of that sex in a particular society

Example of sex-specific illnesses in humans:

Men:

• prostate cancer and other diseases of the male reproductive system only occur in men
• certain genetic diseases, such as colour blindness, occur more frequently in men. They are caused by sex-linked, recessive genes carried on the non-homologous portion of the X chromosome.
• Men are more likely to commit suicide.

Women:

• 99% of breast cancer occurs in women
• ovarian cancer and other diseases of the female reproductive system only occur in women
• More women than men suffer from Sjögren's syndrome, scleroderma, and osteoporosis
• in Western cultures, more women than men suffer from eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia
• Women are more likely to suffer from clinical depression (although bipolar disorder appears to affect both sexes equally)