Infertility or endometriosis could be linked to early menopause risk: study
New research suggests that infertility or endometriosis could be linked to a higher risk of early menopause.
A study published in Menopause, the journal of The Menopause Society, on Wednesday suggests a possible link between women who had unexplained infertility or endometriosis and those who have menopause happening before age 45.
“This study shows that women with primary infertility, specifically those with unexplained infertility or a history of endometriosis, were at risk for early menopause,” said Dr. Stephanie Faubion, medical director of The Menopause Society in the study’s release.
“Given that early menopause is linked to adverse long-term health consequences, these women may benefit from counseling that they are at risk of early menopause. This will allow them to monitor for early menopause and to seek treatment with hormone therapy, if indicated.”
Out of nearly 1,000 participants, about half had been previously diagnosed with primary infertility, meaning they had never been pregnant and had trouble getting pregnant.
In addition, women who had primary infertility appeared to reach menopause one year earlier on average than women without it.
Women with endometriosis appeared to reach menopause 2.75 years earlier than women without endometriosis, while women with “unexplained infertility” underwent menopause 1.45 years earlier than those without it.
Dr. Michelle Jacobson, an OGBYN based out of Toronto and menopause specialist, welcomes the research, but says it was “not a shock” for her.
“This is good for women, because it gives them more information, and a greater context to consider their presentations and their behaviours and their actions when they perhaps are very early in their reproductive journey and only finding out about infertility,” she said. “This is one more thing to add to the list of things to consider.
“This is another study contributing to our knowledge around and our understanding of these relationships and associations, not necessarily a new risk factor.”
The study also states that infertility affects approximately one in six people globally, representing “a large population of reproductive-aged individuals and has implications for not only family building but long-term health.”
It was also suggested that those people also face an elevated risk for developing cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Women who face early menopause before age 45, and premature menopause — happening before age 40 — also face a higher risk for developing health problems like osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease and neurocognitive disorders.
“There are lots of factors that are risk factors for an earlier menopause. Some of them are modifiable and some of them aren’t,” said Jacobson.
“Something like endometriosis is a risk factor for an earlier menopause, partially because women do have multiple surgeries often, and those surgeries impact their ovarian reserve.”
She also recommended that women monitor certain lifestyle habits, such as planning when they want to start a family, maintaining a healthy body weight and not smoking.
“All of these things which help us with conception and potentially with age of our body.”
According to Endometriosis Network Canada, the condition affects at least one in 10 women in Canada, with almost two million Canadians estimated to have endometriosis. However, that number is possibly higher.
Endometriosis is a condition where the lining of the uterus grows outside it, causing severe pelvic pain that includes pain during menstruation and sex as well as pain in surrounding organ tissue including the bowel and bladder.
Roughly one in three people with endometriosis have difficulty getting pregnant.
A May 2026 Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) study analyzed data of more than 1.4 million births in Ontario between April 7, 2006, and March 31, 2021, with 33,619 babies being born to people who had endometriosis.
Of that number, 2,120 babies had a congenital anomaly, representing a 6.3 per cent rate.
Compared to babies born to people without endometriosis, 77,094 had a congenital anomaly, representing a 5.4 per cent rate. The study concluded that “endometriosis in the patient was independently associated with a higher risk of any congenital anomaly.”
In addition, an April 2026 from Oxford University raised hopes surrounding a potential non-invasive endometriosis scan that could help give women an earlier explanation for their symptoms.
Nineteen people with confirmed or suspected endometriosis were evaluated through a specialized SPECT-CT scan, along with an injection of a molecular tracer called maraciclatide. It attached to areas where new blood vessels were forming — believed to be a key part of early endometriosis growth.
As a result, the new technique was able to correctly detect the presence or absence of endometriosis in 16 women.
It was also found that the specialized CT scans are “accurately detecting endometriotic lesions” that is often “missed by conventional imaging methods.”
The study is the second phase of research meant to “generate preliminary evidence of imaging performance characteristics.” The third phase will aim to “validate these findings in a larger group of participants.”
Overall, Jacobson cites more research as “a win for women.”
“It brings us back into the spotlight, it forces us to have conversations about women’s health.”
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is set to bring forward a petition to the House of Commons on July 8 with the hope is that the disease becomes recognized as a disability under federal and provincial programs.
Endometriosis Network Canada also released a call in 2024 for the federal government to ” launch a National Action Plan for Endometriosis.”
The network also states that “Australia in 2018, France in 2022, and England in 2022 have prioritized supporting education, innovation, prompt diagnosis, treatment, and research for endometriosis.”
Although addressing holes in the Canadian health care system is “multi-layered,” Jacobson says “putting women on the right pathway” is imperative.
“We’ve moved so far, and this is over the last 30-plus years, where we’re taking a much more symptoms-based approach to diagnosing and treating endometriosis,” she said.
“We now focus more on things like infertility of the symptoms, pelvic pain, painful periods, pain with intercourse. These are the hallmarks of endometrioses that push us towards the suspicion of the diagnosis, and our goal now is in treating those symptoms.”
“The patient ultimately is the one who will follow their own journey along that web,” she added.
“So, identifying the relationship between these factors, setting women on the right pathway from the beginning rather than being reactive, this is what the kind of overhaul that will be a huge difference, I think, for our patients and for our community.”
globalnews
