PCOS renamed PMOS after global consultations to better reflect its hormonal and metabolic effects

After years of debate, global experts announced that PCOS will now be called PMOS to better reflect the multisystem effects it has on the body. Image Credit: ruizluquepaz/GettyImages Global experts have officially announced a change in name for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).  The condition will now be known as polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS).  This name change was made to reflect the multisystem effects the condition has on the body.  In a culmination of more than 10 years of global consultation, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) has officially been renamed as polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS).  This hormonal disorder affects an estimated 1 in 8 females worldwide.  The name change was announced at the European Congress of Endocrinology in Prague and was published in The Lancet on May 12. “Polycystic ovarian syndrome or PCOS has long been a confusing and misleading diagnosis for women that has not properly described this underdiagnosed medical condition,” said Sherry Ross, MD, board certified OB-GYN and Women’s Health Expert at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA. “Using the updated name of polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, or PMOS, gives a more accurate and inclusive name to this medical condition, which affects women far beyond the ovaries,” she told Healthline. PCOS name change: PMOS reflects multisystem disease Over the past 14 years, 56 academic, clinical, and patient organizations have been campaigning to change the name of PCOS.  The aim was to prioritize a new, accurate name rather than retaining the PCOS acronym or a generic name. The preferred terms to focus on were ovarian, metabolic, and polyendocrine in order to reflect the condition’s multisystem effects.  This led to a consensus for the new name, PMOS.  “By putting ‘endocrine’ and ‘metabolic’ in the name, PMOS tells clinicians this is a whole-body condition, not just a gynecologic diagnosis,” said Steven Vasilev, MD, gynecologic oncologist specializing in endometriosis and founder of the Lotus Endometriosis Institute in Santa Monica, CA. The accuracy of the name was improved by omitting cysts and emphasizing metabolic, endocrine, and ovarian dysfunction. It was important to omit “cysts” because not everyone with PCOS will experience ovarian cysts.  “PCOS has long been linked to polycystic ovaries seen on ultrasound, which is misleading, since [the] ovaries of affected patients can be completely normal. Having normal ovaries does not mean you do not have PCOS, and here lies the confusion,” Ross said.   “Renaming PCOS to PMOS creates a better backdrop to really understanding this multisystem endocrine condition. PMOS better identifies the patient experience of those who are suffering from the complex symptoms associated with this condition,” Ross continued. “PMOS provides more transparency and less confusion for those experiencing symptoms associated with this condition,” she said. Why did PCOS’s name change? The name “polycystic ovary syndrome” has long been recognized as a limiting and inaccurate name.  This misrepresentation has led to various consequences, including:  diagnosis delays fragmentation in care stigma missed opportunities regarding early intervention for metabolic and cardiovascular risks The new name, PMOS, addresses these issues in a few different ways:  reflects the hormonal complexity acknowledges the condition’s strong metabolic and cardiometabolic effects continues to focus on the role of ovaries in the condition without overemphasizing the reproductive aspects The experts who were part of the renaming effort noted that this change may help to reshape how the condition is diagnosed, treated, and researched globally.  “The new name should help push research toward the metabolic and hormonal roots of the disease — insulin resistance, androgen excess, and chronic inflammation — rather than focusing on ovarian cysts,” said Vasilev.  Ross agreed and added, “Even though this new name for a long-standing condition affecting women may take some time to associate with PCOS, it is worth the time and patience to better diagnose this whole-body medical phenomenon.” 

Once thought of primarily as a reproductive issue, PMOS is properly understood as metabolic ill-health

Many women with polycystic ovary syndrome don’t have ovarian cysts, despite what its name suggests. Now renamed polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS), the condition is increasingly understood as a hormonal and metabolic disorder. Experts told CNA Women what the change means for diagnosis, treatment and long-term health.

Learn about the hormonal disorder polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS), formerly called polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

A physician involved in the long push to change the name PCOS to PMOS takes us behind the scenes of this subtle yet consequential change

In this episode of Science Quickly, host Rachel Feltman interviews physician Anuja Dokras about the long road to changing the name of the condition PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome, to polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, or PMOS. The conversation covers why “PCOS” was misleading, what the common condition actually involves and how an international group of researchers, including Dokras, landed on a more accurate name.  Recommended Reading: ‘PCOS is inaccurate’—why scientists renamed polycystic ovary syndrome “Polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, the new name for polycystic ovary syndrome: a multistep global consensus process,” by Helena J. Teede et al, in Lancet. Published online May 12, 2026 E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover! Discover something new everyday: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter. Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Sushmita Pathak and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura, with fact-checking by Emily Makowski and Aaron Shattuck. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices