Although exceedingly rare, endometriosis can even invade other vital organs and structures such as the kidneys, the eyes, liver, pancreas, brain, bone, heart, skin, and nasal cavity.
Endometriosis often involves the pelvic tissue and can envelop the ovaries and fallopian tubes. It can affect nearby organs, including the bowel and bladder. So during the menstrual cycle, or period, this tissue responds to hormones, and due to its location, frequently results in pain.
In women with endometriosis, the tissue typically spreads into the pelvic area but in some cases can travel as far as the chest cavity. The endometrium, no matter where it spreads in the body, is on the same cycle as a woman's period, which is regulated by the female hormone estrogen.
Endometriosis can damage the reproductive organs and affect fertility. For example, adhesions and endometriosis tissue can damage the uterus, making it more difficult for a fertilized egg to implant. It may also damage the ovaries, affecting egg quality and making it harder for a person to become pregnant.
Over time, the endometrial-like tissue that grows outside of your uterus can cause cysts, adhesions and scar tissue. This can cause you to experience long-term (chronic) pain — especially during menstrual periods.
Stage 4 endometriosis life expectancy
Although it can affect your quality of life, it isn't considered to be a fatal disease. Endometriosis is associated with a small number of potentially fatal conditions, such as small bowel obstruction and ectopic pregnancy.
Sometimes this endometrium tissue spreads to other parts of the body, affecting multiple organs and causing symptoms such as: painful periods, intercourse, or gastrointestinal and bladder symptoms; chronic pelvic pain; or infertility.
Stage IV: This is also known as severe endometriosis. With stage IV, deep implants and dense adhesions are present. There may be superficial endometriosis and filmy adhesions, but the disease is more widespread than in Stage III. Any score greater than 40 indicates severe endometriosis.
Endo belly is the colloquial term for abdominal distension caused by endometriosis. Unlike the short-term bloating that sometimes accompanies your period, endo belly is much more severe, triggering physical, mental, and emotional symptoms.
Moreover, we identified that endometriosis modulates gene expression in the insula, amygdala, and hippocampus. These areas of the brain play a key role in pain, anxiety, and depression.
Some groups may refer to category or stage 5 endometriosis when a patient has many dense endometrial adhesions on several organs and is at high risk of needing surgery or experiencing infertility. These categories can help your physician explain your condition and identify the best treatment.
Deep Infiltrating Endometriosis 2 (DIE II) The most severe form, it affects organs within and without the pelvic cavity, including the bowels, appendix, diaphragm, heart, lungs, and (rarely) the brain.
Liver endometriosis is a condition where tissue resembling the lining of the uterus (the endometrium) grows around or inside the liver, forming lesions. Liver endometriosis is very rare, with only a few reported cases in the literature. It can occur without coexisting endometriosis in the pelvic area.
Endometriosis is a benign, or non-cancerous, disease, explains Dr. Ford. “It does not act with the same uncontrolled growth and capability to damage cells that cancer does.”
You could be putting your health at risk if you don't get treatment. While they are unlikely to be fatal, they can have a negative impact on your quality of life. Untreated endometriosis can lead to a variety of complications, including: Pain that lasts for a long time.
Endometriosis can have a range of symptoms such as heavy and painful periods, discomfort during and after intercourse and infertility. However, the condition can also cause abdominal bloating and general fatigue which are very common and often overlooked.
You may also have small cysts on one or both ovaries, and thick bands of scar tissue called adhesions. Stage 4 or severe: This is the most widespread. You have many deep implants and thick adhesions. There are also large cysts on one or both ovaries.
People with endometriosis stage 4 may have deep, penetrative implants (lesions) as well as scar tissue that extends beyond the reproductive organs. Affected areas can include the bladder, bowel, and rectum. 4 Endometriosis in these locations can cause significant pain during bowel movements and urination.
If obstruction of the bowel or urinary tract occurs due to infiltration of endometriosis, urgent surgical management plays a vital role in minimalizing the loss of organ function.
Endometriosis flare-ups are periods of worsened pain and other symptoms that hormonal changes and increased inflammation trigger in the body. These triggers can occur with stress, lack of sleep, alcohol use, and inflammatory foods.
Endometriosis can affect women across all ethnic backgrounds and at any age, but it most commonly affects women during their reproductive years between the ages of 25 and 35.