Adenomyosis: common, overlooked, under-researched The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology, & Women's Health (+...)

Adenomyosis: common, overlooked, under-researched The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology, & Women's Health https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanogw/issue/vol2no11/PIIS3050-5038(26)X2010-6 Although the research spotlight is beginning to shine on endometriosis, other uterine conditions remain critically under-resourced and understudied. One key example is adenomyosis. First described in 1860 by the Austrian pathologist Carl von Rokitansky as a single case of fibrous uterine polyps containing nests of endometrial cells, adenomyosis is now characterised by endometrial glands and stroma within the myometrium, often resulting in heavy menstrual bleeding and pain. For over a century, adenomyosis was only diagnosed via hysterectomy specimens. This diagnostic limitation meant that adenomyosis was thought to primarily affect older women. Since the early 2000s, transvaginal ultrasound (TVUS) and MRI have enabled the identification of adenomyosis in adolescents, women of reproductive age, and after menopause, with preliminary prevalence estimates suggesting that one in ten women have the condition. Often erroneously described as endometriosis of the uterus, a Series co-published by The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology, & Women's Health and eBioMedicine aims to bring adenomyosis to the fore.