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Endometriosis. Artwork of a section through the reproductive system of a woman with endometriosis, the attachment of fragments (blue) of the uterus lining (endometrium) in the pelvic cavity. The fragments have adhered to the fallopian tube (pink, upper left), the ovary (white, upper centre), the uterus wall (pink, upper centre), the bladder (centre) and the rectum (down right). Some cases of the disease are thought to be caused when bits of the endometrium, shed during menstruation, travel up the fallopian tubes rather than out of the body. The fragments produce blood during menstruation, creating often painful cysts. (KEYSTONE/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/JOHN BAVOSI)