Uterine fibroids—common, often missed and frequently painful growths made of muscle and other tissue inside the uterus—may dramatically raise the risk of heart disease, a new paper finds.
In a study of 2.7 million women, the more than 450,000 who were diagnosed with the growths had a more than 80 percent higher risk of developing heart disease over a 10-year period. Experts estimate that as many as 80 percent of women will develop fibroids by age 50, although the condition often goes undiagnosed, even in people who experience symptoms—which can be debilitatingly painful.
Although fibroids are very common, and heart disease is also the leading cause of death among women, potential links between the two have been historically understudied, says study co-author Julia DiTosto, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Pennsylvania. "This gap has left many questions unanswered, including how these conditions might affect long-term cardiovascular outcomes," she says. Now, the findings suggest fibroids may function as a biomarker for screening patients who are at greater risk of cardiovascular problems, she says.
On supporting science journalism
If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.
The researchers calculated the study participants’ risk of heart disease at one, three, five and 10 years after their uterine fibroid diagnosis. Notably, the study found that participants under the age of 40 showed a strong link between fibroids and heart disease, with a 251 percent higher risk at 10 years. DiTosto says that the reason why younger women show this effect is unclear, but one hypothesis she has is that younger women have a lower baseline risk for heart disease than older women, so fibroids might raise their relative risk disproportionately.
The study didn’t conclude that fibroids cause heart disease or look at whether treating a woman’s fibroids or surgically removing them might affect her cardiovascular risk. And the research could not fully account for participants who had undiagnosed fibroids. But, DiTosto says, there is research to suggest fibroids and heart disease may share some biological features that could explain the connection.
“The strength of the relationship between heart disease risk and uterine fibroids was striking,” DiTosto said in a statement. “However, it’s important to note that more research is needed to confirm these findings in other populations” before changing the guidelines for assessing someone’s risk of cardiovascular disease. But the results do suggest, she says, that those who know they have fibroids should have thoughtful conversations with their doctors about heart health.
Editor’s Note (12/11/25): This story was updated to include comments from Julia DiTosto to Scientific American. It was previously edited after posting to correct the estimate of how many women will develop fibroids by age 50.