Progesterone resistance in endometriosis: A pathophysiological perspective and potential treatment alternatives

H. Tang, Hsiao-Chien Tang, Ting‐Chien Lin, Ting-Chien Lin, Meng‐Hsing Wu, Meng-Hsing Wu, Shaw‐Jenq Tsai
Reproductive medicine and biology · 2024 · vol. 23(1) , pp. e12588 · doi:10.1002/rmb2.12588 · PMID:38854774 · W4399434874
article OA: gold CC0 ⤵ 11 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-06 ⓘ

This review examines the molecular mechanisms driving progesterone resistance in endometriosis, identifying environmental toxins, microRNAs, signaling pathways, genetic mutations, and cytokines as key determinants and highlighting selective estrogen/progesterone receptor modulators as potential therapeutic alternatives.

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Abstract

Background: Endometriosis is a common gynecological disease affecting women of reproductive age. Patients with endometriosis frequently experience severe chronic pain and have higher chances to experience infertility. Progesterone resistance is a major problem that develops during the medical treatment of endometriosis, which often leads to treatment failure of hormonal therapies. Previous studies indicated that the dysregulation of progesterone receptors (PR) is the primary factor leading to progesterone resistance in endometriosis. Methods: This review article systematically reviewed and summarized findings extracted from previously published papers available on PubMed, encompassing both experimental studies and clinical trials. Main findings: Various determinants influencing PR expression in endometriosis have been identified, including the environmental toxins, microRNAs, cell signaling pathways, genetic mutations, and the pro-inflammatory cytokines. The selective estrogen/progesterone receptor modulators have emerged as novel therapeutic approaches for treating endometriosis, offering potential improvements in overcoming progesterone resistance. Conclusion: Concerns and limitations persist despite the newly developed drugs. Therefore, studies on unraveling new therapeutic targets based on the molecular mechanisms of progesterone resistance is warranted for the development potential alternatives to overcome hormonal treatment failure in endometriosis.

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Condition tags

endometriosisinfertility

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Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

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