BRISBANE, Calif., and BASEL, Switzerland, Oct. 17, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Myovant Sciences (NYSE: MYOV), a healthcare company focused on developing innovative treatments for women's health and prostate cancer, announced today the formation of Female Forward Together, a cross-sector coalition bringing together expertise in healthcare, research, data science, digital health, and advocacy to improve women's health. In addition to Myovant, founding members include:

• Evidation Health, a health and measurement company that helps life sciences companies understand how everyday behavior and health interact,
• Flo Health, a company developing Flo, the most popular mobile app for women's health, and
• PERIOD. Inc., a youth-led, non-profit organization focused on menstrual equity.

As part of today's announcement, the coalition launched femaleforwardtogether.com. The website features results from a digital health survey, conducted by Myovant and Evidation, to understand the impact of menstrual stigma and symptoms. Over 13,000 females and males elected to share their survey insights in a web-based report. Key survey results were separately announced today.

Lynn Seely, M.D., President and CEO of Myovant, commented:

"The status quo in women's health is unacceptable. We need a new playbook to drive the change women need and deserve. That's why we are proud to partner across sectors with these innovative organizations. This is just the beginning of our shared journey to transform women's health, starting with menstruation."

Christine Lemke, Co-Founder and President of Evidation, stated:

"It is hard to believe that in 2019 major gaps still exist in our understanding of something as fundamental as menstruation. These gaps reflect the underinvestment in women's health and contribute to a lack of innovative solutions for women. We are optimistic that, through measurement, data science, and collaboration, we can make historic strides in women's health."

Kamila Staryga, Vice President of Product at Flo, said: "We are committed to creating technology that empowers women to understand their bodies and to advocate for better health and healthcare. We are excited to build on our existing collaboration with Myovant Sciences and join this coalition. We are confident a brighter future for women's health is possible through partnership."

Nadya Okamoto, Founder and Executive Director of PERIOD., added: "We cannot achieve full progress in women's health if stigma around topics like menstruation remains pervasive. How are we supposed to talk about solutions to period poverty, if we can't even talk about periods openly? By combining our expertise in advocacy with the expertise of the partners in this coalition, we can accelerate our mission to end stigma and achieve menstrual equity."

Women represent more than half of the U.S. population yet are significantly underrepresented in health research and investment. Stigma surrounding women's health issues is pervasive, delays women from seeking treatment, and could threaten lives. Female Forward Together will be a voice and an advocate for equitable research, improved education, and collective action. 

About Flo Health
Flo Health is the developer of Flo, the most popular women's health app in the US and 100+ countries worldwide. Flo combines cutting-edge technology, scientific knowledge and the power of community to support women throughout their entire life, helping them to make better decisions about their health and wellbeing every day. With 30 million monthly active users and 100 million installs, Flo's vision is to significantly improve the health and wellbeing of every woman in the world, through first menstruation, cycle tracking, preparation for conception, pregnancy, early motherhood. 

About PERIOD. Inc.

Myovant Media Contact:
Albert Liao
Director, Corporate Communications
Myovant Sciences, Inc.
[email protected]

Flo Media Contact:
Kate Romanovskaia
Director, Brand & Communications
[email protected]

PERIOD. Media Contact:
Rachel Johnston
[email protected]