£2 million has been given to the University of Aberdeen and the University of Glasgow to trial a new pill to treat Heavy Menstrual Bleeding (HMB).
Leaders of the clinical trial hope that it will “raise awareness” to those who have the condition, after reports show that almost half of those with symptoms have to miss work.
The study is led jointly by Professors Siladitya Bhattacharya from the University of Aberdeen and Hilary Critchley from the University of Edinburgh. Professor Siladitya Bhattacharya has been working on reproductive health for three decades.
The Gaudie spoke with Professor Siladitya Bhattacharya who said that that procedures like a hysterectomy or Endometrial ablation (a procedure that destroys the lining of the uterus) are “increasingly less valid for women who present in their 30s and early 40 with HMB and also with incomplete families.”
“That why i think to get a pill that has a radically different effect compared to the available medical treatments offers great promise in resolving this without a permanent detriment to their fertility.”
Professor Bhattacharya served as the university’s vice-principal for global engagements between 2024 and 2026. He oversaw the announcement of the university’s international campus in his home country of India.
Heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) affects one in three women and can have a major impact on their lives. Over half of those who live with it are unable to carry out their usual daily activities and 43% have missed work due to their symptoms including bleeding and cramps.
The study will be carried out by the University of Aberdeen in collaboration with the University of Edinburgh, NHS Grampian, Barts Health NHS Trust, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust and The Lowdown – a research platform for women’s health. The research team includes women who have lived experience of HMB.
Although Professor Siladitya Bhattacharya thinks that there has been improvement in the way society speaks about reproductive health, he’s “hoping that this trail and the visibility of it will raise awareness both in those who have the condition, the people around them who can begin to understand it for what it is but also for the general medical community as well as society as a whole.”
Professor Hilary Critchley, Professor of Reproductive Medicine at the University of Edinburgh Institute for Regeneration and Repair said: “Heavy menstrual bleeding is debilitating, too often normalised and is under recognised and under researched. This important study will raise awareness and offer a further treatment option to those suffering with HMB.”
270 participants will be treated with either the new drug, called relugolix-CT, or one of the existing medical treatments over the next 12 months. Follow up questionnaires will be used to assess the effect of treatment on quality of life, menstrual symptoms and use of NHS services.