Common Hormone Condition Raises Women's Heart Disease Risk Fourfold, Major Study Finds

A Familiar Condition With a Dangerous Hidden Risk

Women with PMOS — polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome — may have a fourfold higher risk of heart disease, new research suggests. The complex hormone condition affects about one in eight women in the UK. For decades, most people knew it by a different name, and most patients thought of it primarily as a reproductive issue. That framing, experts now say, may have been costing women their lives.

The study, published on July 20, 2026, comes from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Rochester Medicine, who found that young women with PMOS may face higher risks of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) — including heart attacks and strokes. The research compiled data from more than 2 million participants, making it the largest study to date on PMOS and ASCVD in women in the United States.

What the Research Found

For the study, published in *The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology, & Women's Health*, researchers analyzed health insurance data from 2000 to 2022 for 413,450 women with PMOS between the ages of 18 and 50, and matched them to more than two million women who did not have the condition. The scale of that comparison is what gives the findings their weight.

The study found that women with PMOS had a fourfold higher risk of heart disease than those without it — and the increased risk remained even after researchers accounted for other factors linked to heart disease, including high blood pressure and diabetes. That last point is critical. It means the condition itself, not just its common companions, appears to be driving the danger.

Researchers suggest that the biology of the condition — such as high levels of testosterone — may affect the cardiovascular system independently of weight and type 2 diabetes. This challenges the long-held assumption that heart risk in these patients is simply a byproduct of obesity or metabolic problems.

A Condition That Just Got a New Name

The condition was renamed in May after experts said the former term PCOS was misleading because many women with the condition do not have ovarian cysts. In May 2026, the name change was made official by the World Health Organization, the Endocrine Society, and others, and an article was published in *The Lancet*. The new name — polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome — was chosen to better reflect what is actually happening in the body.

The consensus reflects growing recognition that the disorder extends far beyond ovarian dysfunction and encompasses complex endocrine and metabolic abnormalities. Investigators said the term PCOS inaccurately implied the presence of ovarian cysts and failed to capture the multisystem nature of the condition, which affects more than 170 million women worldwide.

A Gap Between Guidelines and Reality

International PMOS guidelines already recommend screening all patients for heart disease risk at diagnosis and providing advice on lifestyle changes — but researchers noted that patient surveys "report delayed diagnosis and substantial dissatisfaction with counselling regarding long-term comorbidities." In short, the guidance exists. The follow-through does not.

Earlier this month, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence said women with PMOS should be seen by health professionals annually to monitor symptoms and manage long-term risks, noting that the condition affects between three and four million women in the UK but is "frequently underdiagnosed."

According to the World Health Organization, 70 percent of women with PMOS are not aware they have it. While it is one of the most common causes of infertility, the disorder can persist throughout a person's lifetime and continue contributing to health issues — including ASCVD, endometrial cancer, and type 2 diabetes — after childbearing years have passed. With a name change, a landmark study, and new clinical guidance all arriving within weeks of each other, the message from the medical community is becoming harder to ignore: PMOS is a lifelong condition, and the heart deserves to be part of the conversation from day one.