ENDOMETRIOSIS DEFINITION

Endometriosis gets started when tissue from your endometrium, the uterine lining that nourishes a developing foetus, begins growing outside the uterus. This misplaced tissue usually turns up elsewhere within your abdominal cavity, most commonly on or around the reproductive organs (which include the ovaries, the fallopian tubes, and the outside of the uterus). It may also grow on the bladder or on the intestines or rectum. The tissue reacts to your monthly cycle of hormones as it normally would: filling with blood, thickening, and then breaking down. But because there's nowhere for this blood and tissue to go as it sloughs off, it builds up and can cause intense abdominal pressure. Meanwhile, the immune system attacks this misplaced endometrial tissue as "foreign tissue," often resulting in adhesions and scarring. If you have endometriosis, you may suffer severe pain during your menstrual periods or during sex. In some cases, the disease can also result in scarring that interferes with pregnancy.

Between 6 and 7 percent of all women develop endometriosis during their reproductive years. Because it's a progressive condition, the symptoms increase in severity over time. If you're diagnosed as having endometriosis while you're young and you want children, your doctor may advise you not to postpone childbearing past your early thirties.