Work

Population-scale reconstruction of menopause dynamics reveals a physiological cliff at the final menstrual period

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Menopause reshapes female physiology, yet current understanding is limited by small longitudinal cohorts that characterize it as a gradual transition. Large-scale biomedical datasets remain underutilized because the final menstrual period (FMP) age is rarely recorded. Here we present a computational framework, inspired by astronomy, that reconstructs FMP-anchored trajectories from cross-sectional data by removing the blurring caused by variation in FMP age across individuals. Applying this to two independent cohorts totaling 300 million laboratory tests revealed a step-like physiological cliff at the FMP including endocrine, skeletal, hepatic, renal and lipid systems. These discontinuities are absent in male individuals, are concordant across populations and appear markedly attenuated by menopausal hormone therapy. Dysregulation began more than a decade before FMP. These findings support a systemic, quantifiable view of menopause and provide a generalizable strategy for recovering hidden biological trajectories applicable to other transitions such as puberty or disease progression. By using a novel computational framework, a cross-sectional analysis on laboratory data from two independent cohorts reveals that the final menstrual period marks an abrupt, multisystem physiological shift, with sex hormone changes beginning more than 10 years before menopause onset.

Source: Nature Medicine

DOI: 10.1038/s41591-026-04614-0