Every September, PCOS Awareness Month provides an opportunity to bring greater attention to one of the most common endocrine conditions affecting women.
This year, that conversation looks a little different.
In May 2026, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) was officially renamed Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS) following a major international consensus process.¹
The change represents much more than a new acronym. It is the latest chapter in the evolving history of a condition that has often been misunderstood, underrecognized, and defined too narrowly.
Today, PMOS is understood as a complex condition that can affect hormones, metabolism, ovulation, fertility, skin and hair, psychological wellbeing, and long-term health.³,⁴
But our understanding wasn’t always this comprehensive.
For PCOS/PMOS Awareness Month, we’re looking back at how the condition came to be understood, how diagnostic thinking has evolved, and why the transition from PCOS to PMOS represents an important moment for women’s health.
The modern clinical understanding of PCOS is often traced to 1935, when physicians Irving Stein and Michael Leventhal described a group of women experiencing irregular or absent menstrual periods, excess hair growth, infertility, and enlarged ovaries.
The condition became associated with what was known as Stein-Leventhal syndrome.
At the time, the ovaries were understandably at the centre of the conversation. The visible ovarian characteristics were among the most recognizable features of the condition, and reproductive symptoms such as irregular menstruation and infertility were major clinical concerns.
As research progressed, however, it became increasingly clear that the ovaries were only one part of a much bigger picture.
Over the decades that followed, researchers began uncovering the important role of androgens and broader hormonal dysregulation in the condition.
Symptoms such as excess facial or body hair and acne weren’t simply secondary concerns. They reflected underlying endocrine changes that could help characterize the syndrome.
Diagnostic frameworks gradually evolved alongside this understanding.
Rather than defining the condition solely by ovarian appearance, clinicians increasingly considered a combination of features, including ovulatory dysfunction, signs of elevated androgen activity, and ovarian morphology.
This was an important shift. PCOS was becoming recognized not simply as an ovarian disorder, but as a complex endocrine syndrome that could look different from one person to another.
Another major evolution came with growing recognition of the relationship between PCOS and metabolic health.
Research established insulin resistance as an important feature for many people with the condition, including people across different body sizes.³
We now know that PMOS can affect multiple aspects of health, including:
PMOS has also been associated with increased risks of impaired glucose tolerance, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular risk factors, sleep apnea, anxiety, depression, and endometrial hyperplasia and cancer.³,⁴
This expanding body of research helped make something increasingly clear: “Polycystic Ovary Syndrome” wasn’t telling the whole story.
For decades, the name PCOS placed considerable emphasis on “polycystic ovaries.”
But despite the terminology, the condition isn’t simply caused or defined by ovarian cysts.¹
The ovarian feature traditionally associated with PCOS is actually an increased number of small follicles visible on ultrasound rather than pathological ovarian cysts. More importantly, ovarian morphology is only one potential diagnostic feature.¹,³
Under current international guidelines, diagnosis in adults is generally based on at least two of three features after other potential causes have been excluded:
That means you do not need ovarian “cysts” to have the condition.
As scientific understanding continued to expand, the mismatch between the name and the biology became increasingly difficult to ignore.
In May 2026, an international consensus process officially renamed PCOS Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome, or PMOS.¹
Each part of the new name was selected to reflect what decades of research have taught us:
Polyendocrine recognizes the involvement of multiple hormonal systems.
Metabolic acknowledges important metabolic features, including insulin resistance and increased long-term metabolic risks for many affected individuals.
Ovarian recognizes that ovulatory and reproductive dysfunction remain important components of the condition.
Syndrome reflects the diverse collection of symptoms and clinical features that can occur.¹
Together, these words provide a broader and more representative description than “polycystic ovaries” alone.
The transition to PMOS wasn’t a decision made by a small group of researchers.
The international renaming process involved 56 leading patient, academic, clinical, and professional organizations from around the world.¹
It included global surveys, workshops, modified Delphi methods, consultation with healthcare professionals, and extensive participation from people living with the condition.
More than 14,000 people with PCOS and multidisciplinary healthcare professionals participated in the iterative global surveys used during the consensus process.¹
The goal was to find terminology that was scientifically accurate while also being understandable, culturally appropriate, practical to implement, and less likely to contribute to stigma.¹
The result was Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS).
While the name has changed, **current evidence-based diagnostic and management recommendations have not.**³
People who already have a PCOS diagnosis do not need to be rediagnosed.
Instead, PMOS gives us language that better aligns with the whole-person approach already emphasized in international guidelines.
Management remains individualized according to symptoms, metabolic health, reproductive goals, and overall wellbeing. Depending on individual needs, this may include lifestyle strategies, nutritional support, physical activity, medications addressing menstrual or metabolic concerns, fertility treatments, and support for symptoms such as acne or excess hair growth.³
Current guidelines also emphasize screening for metabolic and psychological health concerns rather than focusing exclusively on reproductive symptoms.³
The new terminology helps reinforce why that broader approach matters.
Awareness Month isn’t only about knowing that PCOS, or now PMOS, exists. It’s also about improving how we understand it.
The history of PMOS shows how women’s health research can evolve.
What was once viewed primarily through the lens of ovaries, menstruation, and fertility is now understood as a complex condition involving interconnected endocrine, metabolic, reproductive, and psychological factors.
The transition to PMOS reflects that progress.
It may also help address some long-standing misconceptions. Someone does not need ovarian cysts to have PMOS. Metabolic health can matter even when reproductive symptoms are the most visible concern. And the condition can present differently from one person to another.¹,³
Greater awareness of that complexity can support earlier recognition, more informed conversations with healthcare providers, and more comprehensive care.
The transition won’t happen overnight.
The International Evidence-based Guideline has already been updated to use PMOS, formerly PCOS, or PMOS/PCOS, while the next full International Guideline, expected in 2028, will incorporate PMOS as standard terminology.³
Healthcare systems, research databases, medical records, websites, and educational resources will also need time to catch up, which means you’re likely to see PCOS and PMOS used together for some time.
But the change itself represents an important milestone.
From the early descriptions of ovarian and reproductive symptoms to today’s understanding of a complex endocrine and metabolic syndrome, the history of PCOS/PMOS reflects decades of expanding research and awareness.
For PCOS/PMOS Awareness Month, that’s worth recognizing.
The condition hasn’t suddenly changed because its name has. Our understanding of it has grown.
And PMOS gives us a name that better reflects what that growing body of research has taught us, creating a stronger foundation for awareness, recognition, research, and more comprehensive women’s healthcare.
The modern clinical description of PCOS is commonly traced to 1935, when Irving Stein and Michael Leventhal described a group of women experiencing menstrual irregularities, infertility, excess hair growth, and characteristic ovarian findings.
Yes. In May 2026, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) was officially renamed Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS) following an international consensus process.¹
Yes. PMOS is the new name for the condition previously known as PCOS. The terminology has changed, but it does not represent a new disease or diagnosis.¹,³
The name PCOS placed disproportionate emphasis on ovarian “cysts” and did not adequately represent the condition’s broader endocrine and metabolic features. PMOS was selected to better reflect its current scientific understanding.¹
No. Pathological ovarian cysts are not required for diagnosis. Current diagnostic criteria consider hyperandrogenism, ovulatory dysfunction, and polycystic ovarian morphology, with two of the three generally required in adults after other potential causes have been excluded.³
No. PCOS and PMOS refer to the same condition, and the 2026 terminology update did not change current evidence-based diagnostic recommendations.³
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