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What’s in a name? When it comes to PCOS, a lot

What’s in a name? When it comes to PCOS, a lot

60-Second Science vor 4 Monaten

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

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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,
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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
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