The ovary does not simply shut down after menopause. In a study of ovarian tissue from 28 postmenopausal women, scientists at Northwestern University and the Buck Institute for Research on Aging in Novato, California, found that the organ keeps changing at the molecular level for decades, with signs of more inflammation and ongoing tissue remodeling in older women.
The findings were published in the journal Aging Cell on Oct. 14. Because many women live for decades after their final period, the work raises new questions about ovarian cancer risk and about removing healthy ovaries during other surgeries. The researchers say their study does not answer those questions yet.
