PCOS Renamed PMOS in Landmark Shift for Women’s Health

In a major milestone for women’s health, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) has officially been renamed Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS) following a global consensus process led by international researchers and clinicians.

The change, published in The Lancet, aims to better reflect the true complexity of the condition, which affects an estimated one in eight women globally.

Experts say the previous name “PCOS” was scientifically misleading because many women diagnosed with the condition do not actually have ovarian cysts, while the name itself overemphasised fertility and reproductive symptoms rather than the broader endocrine and metabolic impacts.

The move has been welcomed by many in the women’s health sector as a sign that medicine is beginning to listen more closely to women’s lived experiences.

Dr Ariella Heffernan-Marks, founder of Ovum and someone living with PCOS herself, says the renaming represents an important cultural shift in women’s healthcare.

“As someone living with PCOS myself, I do think the move to PMOS is a positive step toward recognising that this is far more than just a reproductive condition and reflects a broader shift toward finally listening to women and evolving women’s healthcare,” she said.

However, she also cautioned that the new terminology may unintentionally overlook women who experience non-metabolic PCOS, a form of the condition that does not always present with obvious metabolic symptoms.

“At the same time, I do have some concerns that the strong emphasis on the metabolic component may unintentionally exclude or further confuse women with non-metabolic (such as myself), who are already widely misunderstood and often overlooked because they don’t fit the stereotypical presentation of the condition.”

PMOS is increasingly being recognised as a whole-body condition affecting hormones, metabolism, mental health and cardiovascular risk, rather than solely fertility and ovarian function.

For Heffernan-Marks, the discussion highlights a much bigger issue in women’s health: the need for more nuanced, personalised approaches to diagnosis and care.

“What this really highlights is just how complex and individual women’s health conditions are — and why we need more nuanced, personalised and women-specific approaches to care, research and diagnosis.”