July is Fibroid Awareness Month, and actress Lupita Nyong'o is sharing her personal journey with the condition, hoping to reach "anyone else who has ever felt dismissed, confused, or alone."
In an Instagram post on Tuesday (July 15), Nyong'o shared that she had 30 uterine fibroids removed in 2014 — the same year she won an Oscar for 12 Years a Slave. Despite undergoing surgery, her doctor at the time told her nothing could be done to prevent the fibroids from recurring, and it was only a matter of time before they returned.
"When we reach puberty, we're taught that periods mean pain, and that pain is simply part of being a woman," Nyong'o wrote.
She shared that she began by speaking about her experience privately, only to realize how many women could relate.
"We're struggling alone with something that affects most of us. No more suffering in silence!" she added.
Uterine fibroids are almost always non-cancerous tumors that grow in or around the uterus. According to the Office of Women's Health, an estimated 20% to 80% of women will develop fibroids during their lifetime.
Black women are particularly affected, as they are three times more likely to develop fibroids than white women, per the National Institutes of Health.
While fibroids don't affect every woman the same way, common side effects may include heavy menstrual bleeding, pelvic pain, anemia, frequent urination, and complications during pregnancy.
"We need to stop treating this massive issue like a series of unfortunate coincidences," Nyong'o wrote on Instagram. "We must reject the normalization of female pain."
The Black Panther star also appeared on Capitol Hill on Tuesday to help introduce a package of Congressional bills focused on uterine fibroids. The proposed legislation aims to "expand research funding, increase early detection and interventions for uterine fibroids, study the causes of uterine cancer, and increase public awareness."
In addition, Nyong'o announced the launch of the FWH x Lupita Nyong'o Uterine Fibroid Grant, created in partnership with the Foundation for Women's Health to support medical research on understanding and treating uterine fibroids.
Nyong'o shared her vision for a future that includes early education for teenagers, better screening protocols, more effective prevention research, and less invasive treatments. Through her partnership with FWH, she hopes to turn that vision into action — transforming the current landscape through research and advocacy.
"When something affects 8 out of 10 women and we're still caught off guard by it, that's not individual bad luck – that is systemic failure," Nyong'o said in a post on the foundation's official website. "There's something deeply wrong when a serious, mysterious health problem is so common that it's treated as casual, as inevitable."
She added, "I'm speaking up because silence serves no one. The presence of pain is a signal that something must change... We deserve better. It's time to demand it."