Oscar winner shines light on uterine fibroids

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Academy Award-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o stepped away from the big screen Tuesday and onto Capitol Hill, joining members of the Congressional Black Caucus to call for urgent action on uterine fibroids a condition that disproportionately affects Black women.

“It affects so many women Black, white, Latino,” Nyong’o said during a roundtable with lawmakers. “We are affected.”

The actress joined Congresswomen Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) and Shontel Brown (D-Ohio.) to push for more research, federal funding, and medical training to combat fibroids, which the National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimates will impact nearly 80% of Black women by age 50.

“Transformation begins with understanding,” Nyong’o said. “And understanding requires research. Let’s start researching some female bodies.”

Clarke called it a “crisis of medical misinformation, confusion and self-doubt,” as she and Brown emphasized the need for increased NIH funding and better support for patients and healthcare providers.

Brown added that the issue is deeply personal for many women, including herself. “When you look across the spectrum of women, it is personal,” she said.

Both lawmakers have introduced legislation aimed at increasing fibroid research and awareness, and Brown says she’s working to bring bipartisan support to get it passed.

Backed by a powerful voice in Hollywood and growing momentum on the Hill, advocates hope the push will lead to lasting change for millions of women.