An ovarian endometrioma is a non-cancerous cystic mass within the ovary. It contains thick, brown, tar-like fluid (old blood) which may be referred to as a "chocolate cyst." The exact cause of the cyst is unknown and affects approximately 5–10% of women of reproductive age in the United States. Symptoms include chronic pelvic pain, dysmenorrhea (menstrual pain), dyspareunia (pain with sexual intercourse) and/or infertility. The goals of endometrioma treatment are to relieve symptoms, prevent complications related to the ovarian mass (i.e. rupture or torsion), exclude malignancy, improve subfertility (delay in conceiving), and preserve ovarian function.