A review of phase II and III drugs for the treatment and management of endometriosis

Umberto Perrone, Evangelisti G, Giulio Evangelisti, Antonio Simone Laganà, Bogliolo S, Stefano Bogliolo, Marcello Ceccaroni, Ceccaroni M, Alberto Izzotti, Izzotti A, Gustavino C, Claudio Gustavino, Simone Ferrero, Ferrero S, Barra F, Fabio Barra
Expert opinion on emerging drugs · 2023 · vol. 28(4) , pp. 333–351 · doi:10.1080/14728214.2023.2296080 · PMID:38099328 · W4389792758
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⚙ AI-generated summary by gemini-2.5-flash-lite, 2026-06-07 ⓘ

This review summarizes phase II-III hormonal treatments for endometriosis, highlighting GnRH antagonists as a promising option with rapid onset and reversible estrogen suppression compared to existing therapies.

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Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Endometriosis is an estrogen-dependent disease that gives rise to pelvic pain and infertility. Although estroprogestins and progestins currently stand as the first-line treatments for this condition, demonstrating efficacy in two-thirds of patients, a significant portion of individuals experience only partial relief or symptom recurrence following the cessation of these therapies. The coexistence of superficial, deep endometriosis, and ovarian endometriomas, as three distinct phenotypes with unique pathogenetic and molecular characteristics, may elucidate the current heterogeneous biological response to available therapy. AREAS COVERED: The objective of this review is to furnish the reader with a comprehensive summary pertaining to phase II-III hormonal treatments for endometriosis. EXPERT OPINION: Ongoing research endeavors are directed toward the development of novel hormonal options for this benign yet debilitating disease. Among them, oral GnRH antagonists emerge as a noteworthy option, furnishing rapid therapeutic onset without an initial flare-up; these drugs facilitate partial or complete estrogen suppression, and promote prompt ovarian function recovery upon discontinuation, effectively surmounting the limitations associated with previously employed GnRH agonists. Limited evidence supports the use of selective estrogen and progesterone receptor modulators. Consequently, further extensive clinical research is imperative to garner a more profound understanding of innovative targets for novel hormonal options.

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Condition tags

endometriosisinfertility

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis

Citation neighborhood (2-hop)

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. Outer rings show 2-hop neighbours — papers reached through the immediate citers/citees. [ collapse to 1-hop ]

References (100)

Cited by (13)

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