Lupita Nyong’o is making fibroids impossible to ignore
Plus: 🏆 Women making Oscars history 👯♀️ Female friendships 🔬 Research into women's health
Lupita Nyong’o has been advocating for better awareness and treatment of uterine fibroids for years - but her latest update puts the scale of the issue into stark focus.
In a candid reflection, Lupita revealed she’s living with more than 50 fibroids, years after surgery to remove dozens before. It’s a reality she says is far from rare - just rarely talked about. As she opens up about the pain and the limited options still on offer, it raises an uncomfortable question about what women are expected to endure and why so little has changed…
In this issue of Take The Lead, we’re diving into two major studies shaping what we understand about women’s health - from how pregnancy reshapes the brain to a breakthrough blood test that could predict dementia decades in advance.
Plus, Autumn Durald Arkapaw made Oscars history with her cinematography work on Sinners and took her moment to acknowledge every woman in the room, while Paramount+ The Madison actress Michelle Pfeiffer reflects on the women who’ve carried her through life’s difficult moments.
Enjoy, share it with your friends, and let us know what you think!
The Female Lead Team
We’re talking about…
🧠 Rethinking “baby brain” New research by Be Mother suggests pregnancy doesn’t make women less capable, it reshapes the brain for motherhood. The largest study of its kind found grey matter - linked to emotion, empathy and processing - decreases by around 5% during pregnancy. But scientists say this may actually help mothers adapt to caring for a newborn.
“It’s not about becoming forgetful - it’s about becoming more specialised for the job.”
🧪 Dementia detected earlier A breakthrough blood test could predict dementia risk in women decades before symptoms appear. Researchers found that higher levels of a protein linked to Alzheimer’s can signal future cognitive decline up to 25 years in advance, offering a potential window for much earlier intervention. Experts in the UK have welcomed the findings, pointing to rapid progress in developing simple blood tests that could transform early detection.
Inspire me…
"I wanted it for all the girls at home."
Autumn Durald Arkapaw made Oscars history as the first woman to pick up the Academy Award for best cinematography for Sinners. In her speech, Autumn invited all the women in the audience to stand up, thanking them for their support.
Lupita Nyong’o is advocating for better uterine fibroid treatments and awareness after revealing she is currently living with over 50 of them, 12 years after having surgery to remove 30 growths.
To mark her 43rd birthday, Lupita shared the latest on her health condition. “Over the course of my lifetime, I have carried 77 uterine fibroids: 25 surgically removed, and more than 50 still growing inside me today - the largest the size of an orange,” she said. “In this image, I’m holding 77 fruits, as a symbol for each fibroid, to make visible the weight that I, and millions of women like me, carry every day.”
Final thought…
“Working with women - acting with them - there’s something very special about it. There’s an energy that we have together… There’s some magic that happens, you become like a coven.”
Paramount+ The Madison actress Michelle Pfeiffer on the women who have supported her through life’s difficult moments
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