A quarter of women live with serious reproductive health issues

More than a quarter of women in England live with a serious reproductive health issue, according to the largest survey of its kind, with experts warning of "systemic, operational, structural and cultural issues" that prevent women accessing care.

- Tobi Thomas

The survey of 60,000 women across England in 2023 found that 28% of respondents were living with a reproductive morbidity, such as pelvic organ prolapse, uterine fibroids, endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome, or cervical, uterine, ovarian or breast cancer.

The survey, funded by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and analysed by academics at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, showed 19% of women reported experiencing severe period pain in the last year, with 40% reporting heavy menstrual bleeding.

More than 30% of participants aged between 16 and 24 reported severe period pain.

Stark ethnic inequalities were revealed by the survey. More than a third (38.1%) of black women reported a reproductive condition, compared with 27.7% of white women. Black women were 69% more likely to have such a condition than their counterparts after adjusting for age.

Regarding uterine fibroids, 19.8% of black women reported having the condition, compared with only 5% of their white counterparts.