Early Detection and Screening in Endometriosis
Soumyadeep Ghosh1, Abdelrahman Elshikh1, Leo L Tsai1
1Division of Abdominal Radiology, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Abstract:
Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 women of reproductive age and is often diagnosed after years of symptom onset. Although population-wide screening is not recommended in asymptomatic women, targeted imaging-based assessment in symptomatic high-risk groups offers a feasible pathway for early detection. This article summarizes the evidence supporting imaging-led diagnostic strategies for early disease detection. The concept of augmented pelvic ultrasound and the role of MRI for disease detection are described. MRI for presurgical disease mapping and the added value of structured reporting are explained. The pillars of a successful screening program in screening eligible diseases and how these strategies can be extrapolated for endometriosis diagnosis in an enriched population are proposed.


