Dr Cory Dugan
Research and tools

Years of research into iron and women's health. Now built into tools.

I am a PhD health scientist working at the intersection of women's health, iron metabolism, and health data. My research is published, cited in clinical guidance, and referenced by the World Health Organization. I now build the screening and analysis tools that put that evidence to work, and I am extending that into health data and applied AI.

Evidence 30+ publications on iron, fatigue and women's health
Recognition WHO work cited by the World Health Organization
Evidence

Published, and on the record

Work published in JAMA Network Open, Anaesthesia, the British Journal of Sports Medicine and the British Journal of Haematology. Cited by the World Health Organization in its guidance on implementing patient blood management. Every tool I build is grounded in this body of work.

  • IRONWOMAN randomised controlled trial. Intravenous iron therapy in iron-deficient recreationally active women. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 2025. Lead author.
  • Iron optimisation in pregnancy. ANZ collaborative consensus statement. Internal Medicine Journal, 2025. Co-author.
  • Systematic review of IV iron in non-anaemic iron deficiency. Cited in 2025 WHO patient blood management guidance.
For researchers

The R I use for my own research, packaged

Nine ready-to-use, heavily commented R scripts that handle the repetitive parts of a health-research analysis, including a publication-ready ggplot2 theme, a grouped Table 1 generator, sample-size helpers, a regression reporter, forest plots, a correlation heatmap, a body-iron calculation, and a reproducible RMarkdown template. Tidyverse-first, no black boxes.

A$49one-time
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Resources

A growing library, free and paid

I am building a library of practical guides and tools for clinicians, researchers and the women this research is for. The first pieces are the Iron Protocol guide and the R script pack. More is on the way.

Publications

The full record

30+ research outputs on iron, fatigue and women's health. The de-duplicated journal-article list is below; the full profile with citations is on Google Scholar.

Peer-reviewed journal articles
J Nutrition 2026 Anaemia Caloric Restriction Hepcidin
Effect of two-year caloric restriction on indicators of anaemia, iron status, and hepcidin in healthy adults: a randomized clinical trial
Dugan C, Das SK, Racette SB, Martin CK, Ravussin E, Redman LM, et al. The Journal of Nutrition. doi
BJSM 2025 Iron Deficiency Women's Health Lead Author · RCT
Effect of intravenous iron therapy on exercise performance, fatigue scores and mood states in iron-deficient recreationally active females of reproductive age: a double-blind randomised controlled trial (IRONWOMAN)
Dugan C, Peeling P, Buissink P, MacLean B, Lim J, Jayasuriya P, et al. British Journal of Sports Medicine 59(13).
BJSM 2025 Sport Science Haemoglobin Mass Lead Author
Carbon monoxide inhalation to increase haemoglobin mass: a canary in a coal mine for sport?
Dugan C, Hennigar S. British Journal of Sports Medicine 59(11).
Br J Haematology 2025 Anaemia Women's Health HMB
Greater prevalence of anaemia and heavy menstrual bleeding reported in women of reproductive age in the United Kingdom compared to Australia
MacLean B, Fuller J, Lim J, Dugan C, Richards T. British Journal of Haematology 206(5).
JAMA Network Open 2025 IV Iron Surgery
Intravenous Iron–Induced Hypophosphatemia in Surgical Patients
Richards T, Wijaya LK, Lim J, Dugan C, Dahly D. JAMA Network Open 8(4).
Internal Medicine J 2025 Pregnancy Iron Deficiency Consensus Statement
Iron optimisation in pregnancy: a Haematology in Obstetric and Women's Health Collaborative consensus statement
Clarke L, Froessler B, Tang C, King K, Ross B, Kidson-Gerber G, Dugan C, et al. Internal Medicine Journal 55(2).
Vox Sanguinis 2025 Community Screening Women's Health
Community screening for iron deficiency in reproductive aged women: lessons learnt from Australia
MacLean B, Lim J, Fuller J, Wylie R, Joo JY, Al-Sharea A, Dugan C, et al. Vox Sanguinis 120(1).
Sports Injury Bull. 2025 Iron Deficiency Female Athletes Lead Author
Ironing out iron deficiency in female athletes
Dugan C, Henson W. Sports Injury Bulletin.
Anaesthesia & Analgesia 2024 Ultramarathon Iron Metabolism
What is "Normal" Iron Metabolism in Response to Inflammation in Ultramarathon Runners?
Richards T, Fuller J, Nguyen H, Lim J, MacLean B, Dugan C. Anesthesia and Analgesia 139(6).
BJSM 2024 Iron Deficiency Women's Health Lead Author · PhD Academy Award
Iron and women's health: a multidimensional exploration of iron deficiency, management and treatment in active women
Dugan C. British Journal of Sports Medicine 58(23). BJSM PhD Academy Award.
Eur J Applied Physiology 2024 Biomarkers Muscle Damage
Temporal tracking of cysteine 34 oxidation of plasma albumin as a biomarker of muscle damage following a bout of eccentric exercise
James C, Dugan CW, Boyd C, Fournier PA, Arthur PG. European Journal of Applied Physiology 124(9).
Systematic Reviews 2024 Meta-Analysis Iron Supplementation Lead Author
Efficacy of iron supplementation on physical capacity in non-anaemic iron-deficient individuals: protocol for an individual patient data meta-analysis
Dugan C, Peeling P, Burden R, Richards T. Systematic Reviews 13(1).
J Science & Medicine in Sport 2024 Menorrhagia Screening Lead Author
The relationship between menorrhagia, iron deficiency, and anaemia in recreationally active females: an exploratory population-based screening study
Dugan C, Peeling P, Davies A, MacLean B, Simpson A, Lim J, Richards T. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport 27(7).
Patient Preference & Adherence 2023 Patient Preferences Iron Therapy Lead Author
The perceived impact of iron deficiency and iron therapy preference in exercising females of reproductive age: a cross-sectional survey study
Dugan C, Simpson A, Peeling P, Lim J, Davies A, Buissink P, MacLean B, et al. Patient Preference and Adherence.
Transfusion 2023 Anaemia Scoping Review
Non-erythropoiesis stimulating agent, non-iron therapies for the management of anemia: a scoping review
Davies AT, Devlin PM, Dugan C, Richards T, Miles LF. Transfusion.
Eur J Sport Science 2023 Iron Supplementation Athletes
Timing is everything, but does it really matter? Impact of 8-weeks morning versus evening iron supplementation in ballet and contemporary dancers
Attwell C, McKay A, Sim M, Dugan C, Nicholas J, Hopper L, Peeling P. European Journal of Sport Science 23(12).
JCSM 2022 Meta-Analysis IV Iron Lead Author · Cited by WHO
Systematic review and meta-analysis of intravenous iron therapy for adults with non-anaemic iron deficiency: an abridged Cochrane review
Dugan C, Cabolis K, Miles LF, Richards T. Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle.
BMJ Open 2022 Anaemia Scoping Review Protocol
Non-erythropoiesis-stimulating agent, non-iron therapies for the management of anaemia: protocol for a scoping review
Devlin P, Davies A, Dugan C, Richards T, Miles LF. BMJ Open.
Eur J Applied Physiology 2022 Occupational Health Mining Simulation
The influence of rest break frequency and duration on physical performance and psychophysiological responses: a mining simulation study
Uchiyama K, King J, Wallman K, Taggart S, Dugan C, Girard O. European Journal of Applied Physiology.
Nutrients 2022 Dietary Iron Dancers
Dietary iron and the elite dancer
Attwell C, Dugan C, McKay AKA, Nicholas J, Hopper L, Peeling P. Nutrients.
Nutrition X Change 2022 Iron Athletes
Iron and the athlete
Peeling P, McKay A, McCormick R, Dugan C, Sim M. The Nutrition X Change.
Anaesthesia 2021 Women's Health Editorial Lead Author
The misogyny of iron deficiency
Dugan C, MacLean B, Cabolis K, Abeysiri S, Khong A, Sajic M, et al. Anaesthesia. Wiley Top Downloaded Article 2021.
JCEM 2021 Type 1 Diabetes Altitude Lead Author
Effects of simulated high altitude on blood glucose levels during exercise in individuals with type 1 diabetes
Dugan CW, Maloney SK, Abramoff KJ, Panag SS, Davis EA, Jones TW, et al. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Medicine 2021 Anaemia Screening Women's Health Lead Author
The need to screen for anemia in exercising women
Dugan C, Scott C, Abeysiri S, Baikady RR, Richards T. Medicine.
J Science & Medicine in Sport 2021 Anaemia Screening Women's Health
The need to screen for anaemia in female populations
Abeysiri S, Dugan C, Raobaikady R, Richards T, Scott C. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.
Under review
Healthcare Under review Content Analysis Iron Deficiency
TikTok videos on iron deficiency: a cross-sectional content analysis
Lim J, MacLean B, Dugan C, Hines E, Clement I, Richards T. Healthcare.
J Philosophy Under review Epistemology Early Career Research
The death of empirical knowledge: a paradox of contemporary epistemology, a narrative perspective of early career researchers
Dugan C & Budden T. The Journal of Philosophy.
Doctoral research
UWA 2024 Iron Deficiency Women's Health Doctoral Thesis
Iron and women's health: a multidimensional exploration of iron deficiency, management, and treatment in active females
Dugan C. University of Western Australia, School of Human Sciences. Supervised by Prof. Peter Peeling.
Conference proceedings and symposia
Residence at moderate altitude increases hemoglobin mass, but does not affect plasma volume: findings from the military nutrition and health examination survey
Dugan C. Pennington Biomedical Research Center Symposium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA, 2025
TikTok videos on iron deficiency: a cross-sectional content analysis
Lim J, MacLean B, Dugan C, Hines E, Clement I, Richards T. 24th Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management, Haemostasis and Thrombosis (NATA), Bologna, Italy, 2024
The effect of intravenous iron therapy on physical capacity, fatigue scores, and quality of life in iron-deficient recreationally active females of reproductive age (IRONWOMAN trial)
Dugan C, Peeling P, MacLean B, Lim J, Jayasuriya P, Richards T. 24th Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management (NATA), Bologna, Italy, 2024
Intravenous iron leads to lower rates of anaemia in Australia
Fuller J, MacLean B, Lim J, Dugan C, Abeysiri S, Richards T. 24th Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management (NATA), Bologna, Italy, 2024
What is 'normal' iron metabolism in response to inflammation in ultramarathon runners
Fuller J, Nguyen H, MacLean B, Lim J, Dugan C, Al-Sharea A, Richards T. 24th Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management (NATA), Bologna, Italy, 2024
Screening and assessing the interrelation and impact of anaemia, iron status, and menstrual blood loss in recreationally active women of reproductive age
Dugan C, Davis A, Buissink P, Simpson A, Peeling P, Richards T. 23rd Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management, Haemostasis and Thrombosis, Athens, Greece, 2023
Systematic review and meta-analysis of intravenous iron therapy for adults with non-anaemic iron deficiency
Dugan C, Cabolis K, Miles L, Richards T. Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management (NATA), 2022 (virtual)
The effect of acute hypoxia on blood glucose levels and carbohydrate oxidation rates during moderate intensity exercise in individuals with type 1 diabetes
Dugan C, Maloney S, Abramoff K, Panag S, Davis E, Jones T, Fournier P. Sports Medicine Australia Annual Conference, 2021 (virtual)
The need to screen for anaemia in female populations
Dugan C, Scott C, Abeysiri S, Raobaikady R, Richards T. Sports Medicine Australia Annual Conference, 2021 (virtual)
The effect of acute hypoxia on blood glucose levels and carbohydrate oxidation rates during moderate intensity exercise in individuals with type 1 diabetes
Dugan C, Maloney S, Abramoff K, Panag S, Davis E, Jones T, Fournier P. Exercise & Sports Science Australia Research to Practice, 2021 (virtual)
The misogyny of iron deficiency
Dugan C, MacLean B, Cabolis K, Abeysiri S, Khong A, Sajic M, Richards T (on behalf of the Women's Health Research Collaborative). Exercise & Sports Science Australia Research to Practice, 2021 (virtual)
The need to screen for anaemia in fit and healthy women
Dugan C, Scott C, Abeysiri S, Raobaikady R, Richards T. 21st Annual NATA Symposium, 2021 (virtual)
The misogyny of iron deficiency
Dugan C, MacLean B, Cabolis K, Abeysiri S, Khong A, Sajic M, Richards T (on behalf of the Women's Health Research Collaborative). International Sarcopenia Translational Research Conference (ISTRC), 2021 (virtual)
"Are you really fit and healthy?"
Scott C, Abeysiri S, McAleavy R, Dugan C, Raobaikady R, Richards T. 21st Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management, Haemostasis and Thrombosis, Athens, Greece, 2020
"Is fingerprick testing accurate to identify iron deficiency?"
Abeysiri S, Scott C, Dugan C, Raobaikady R, Richards T. 21st Annual Symposium on Patient Blood Management, Haemostasis and Thrombosis, Athens, Greece, 2020
The effect of acute hypoxia on blood glucose levels and carbohydrate oxidation rates during moderate intensity exercise in individuals with type 1 diabetes: final results
Dugan C, Maloney S, Abramoff K, Panag S, Davis E, Jones T, Fournier P. Child Health Symposium, Perth Children's Hospital, Western Australia, 2019
The effect of acute hypoxia on blood glucose levels and carbohydrate oxidation rates during moderate intensity exercise in individuals with type 1 diabetes: preliminary findings
Dugan C, Maloney S, Abramoff K, Panag S, Davis E, Jones T, Fournier P. Telethon Kids Institute Children's Diabetes Centre Symposium, Perth, Western Australia, 2019
The effect of acute hypoxia on blood glucose levels and carbohydrate oxidation rates during moderate intensity exercise in individuals with type 1 diabetes: rationale and design of research
Dugan C, Maloney S, Abramoff K, Panag S, Davis E, Jones T, Fournier P. Telethon Kids Institute Children's Diabetes Centre Symposium, Perth, Western Australia, 2018

View full profile on Google Scholar

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