About this Research Topic
Endometriosis is a gynecological disorder dependent on estrogen for growth that causes consider-able chronic pelvic pain, pain during intercourse, and is a major cause of infertility. This disorder affects 6% - 10% of reproductive age women, but can be as high as 35-50% in women experiencing pelvic pain and/or infertility. Robust epidemiologic data demonstrate a clear association between endometriosis, reproductive risk factors, inflammation, increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, increased ovarian cancer risk, and increased risk of autoimmune disorders. Findings also implicate environmental endocrine disruptors may both cause and exacerbate this disease. The estrogen dependency and associated risks in women with endometriosis creates a conundrum: estrogen expo-sure is often considered protective for women, but estrogen suppression (the standard of care from a clinical standpoint), may be beneficial for reducing inflammatory signaling and lesion proliferation. However, not treating disease and hormone suppression lead to other associated comorbidities.
This Research Topic will tackle the complex disorder that is endometriosis and will do so from basic science and clinical perspectives. The goal of this Research Topic will be to address the importance of understanding the onset of endometriosis as a chronic systemic inflammatory disease that can be exacerbated by environmental exposures.
We would like contributors to address the following themes in their contributions:
- cardiovascular implications of endometriosis
- immunotoxicants and endocrine disrupting chemicals and their effect on the normal uterus
- pathophysiology of infertility, PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) and other diseases linked or caused by endometriosis
We would like to acknowledge Dr. Valerie Flores has acted as coordinator and has contributed to the preparation of the proposal for this Research Topic.
Topic Editor Tanya Petrossian is the founder and CEO of EndoCyclic Therapeutics, a company working on developing a non-hormonal therapeutic for endometriosis. The other Topic Editors declare no competing interests with regard to the Research Topic subject.
Keywords: Endometriosis, immune, cardiovascular, toxicants, comorbidity
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
