Latest news with #EndometriosisActionMonth
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Inverclyde's MP backs endometriosis campaign as new figures reveal shocking delays
INVERCLYDE'S MP has given his backing to a national campaign highlighting the challenges faced by women with endometriosis. Around 1.5 million women in the UK live with the condition - but even though it affects one in 10 women, new research released this Endometriosis Action Month by charity Endometriosis UK shows that only 50 per cent of young adults in the UK know what endometriosis is. The shocking lack of awareness is leaving those with the condition facing an average of almost 9 years for a diagnosis, leading to loss of education and work productivity, often impacting both physical and mental health. Last year the Tele reported the story of Greenock woman Emma Jess, who said she had been waiting for NHS surgery to treat her endometriosis for five years. Emma, 27, told us she had suffered from the debilitating and incurable condition since the age of nine - and had been on the list for surgery since 2019. READ MORE: Greenock woman says she's still waiting for endometriosis surgery after five years on the list Martin McCluskey MP said: 'Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 in Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West and this Endometriosis Action Month I am pledging my support by raising awareness of this often devastating disease. "I have been struck by the number of women who have attended my surgeries who are dealing with delays in diagnosis for endometriosis. 'Despite its prevalence, latest research from Endometriosis UK highlights that it currently takes on average nearly nine years to get a diagnosis, and it's a disease only 50 per cent of young adults have ever even heard of. 'Not only without a diagnosis can the disease worsen but it can have a huge impact on all aspects someone's life. "I look forward to working with Endometriosis UK and my constituents to raise vital awareness of endometriosis." (Image: Contributed) Faye Farthing, Head of Communications at Endometriosis UK added: 'We are delighted to have the support of Martin McCluskey MP during Endometriosis Action Month. "It's shocking that despite being the second most common gynaecological condition in the UK, only 50 per cent of young adults have ever even heard of it. It is vital that every young person is taught in school what is and isn't normal and feels empowered to seek help if needed. 'Without this knowledge, young people will continue to suffer in silence; missing out on vital education, future employment opportunities, as well as impacting on physical and mental health. "The lifelong impact of this cannot be overstated. We therefore look forward to working with MPs and the Government to improve education and care for the 1.5million women and those assigned female at birth with endometriosis in the UK." A poll of 2,000 members of the public, conducted last month, revealed that awareness of endometriosis is on the rise, with 64 per cent recognising it as a gynaecological health condition, up from 53 per cent in 2024. However, one in three admitted to not having open conversations about periods and menstrual health with anyone - and 60 per cent admitted they would not know how to support someone they were close to if they got diagnosed with endometriosis. Latest research by Endometriosis UK from a survey of 4,371 people who have received a diagnosis of endometriosis in March 2024 found that it takes an average of eight years and 10 months in Scotland to receive a diagnosis of endometriosis. The figure is the same in England, and rises to nine years and five months in Northern Ireland and to nine years and 11 months in Wales. Almost half of all respondents (47 per cent) said they had visited their GP 10 or more times with symptoms prior to receiving a diagnosis, and 70 per cent had visited five times or more. Only one in 10 reported that GPs had mentioned suspected endometriosis at either their first or second appointment where symptoms were discussed. More than half - 52 per cent - said they had visited A&E at least once, and fewer than a fifth of those (17 per cent) were referred to gynaecology at their first visit. One in four - 26 per cent - visited A&E three or more times with symptoms prior to diagnosis, while 20 per cent reported seeing a gynaecologist 10 or more times before being diagnosed. And more than three quarters of those who later received a diagnosis of endometriosis said they had experienced one doctor, or more, telling them they were making a 'fuss about nothing' - a number which increased from 69 per cent to 78 per cent compared to the last such survey, in 2020.
The Independent
07-03-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Sports presenter Anita Jones says she was ‘gaslit by doctors for 14 years' over endometriosis diagnosis
Sports broadcaster Anita Jones, 34, says she spent years feeling "gaslit" by doctors who dismissed her excruciating pain, telling her "nothing was wrong". The CBS Sports and Premier League presenter finally received surgery last year for endometriosis, a debilitating condition affecting one in 10 women and those assigned female at birth in the UK. Jones's experience highlights a concerning lack of awareness and understanding surrounding endometriosis. Despite being a common gynaecological condition, impacting individuals from puberty to menopause, Endometriosis UK reports that only half of young adults in the UK recognise the disease. Worryingly, many healthcare professionals, including GPs and A&E doctors, also fail to identify its symptoms. Endometriosis occurs when tissue similar to the womb lining grows elsewhere in the body. Responding to menstrual cycle hormones, these cells cause inflammation, pain, and scarring. Jones, who has also been a Sky Sports and BBC Sports presenter, first went to the doctors for painful periods at the age of 14. 'My periods were extremely heavy and I could never concentrate in school. When I went to the doctors they told me girls can just have painful periods and nothing was wrong,' she says. 'As I got older, I wasn't just having pain when bleeding. I was having pelvic pain for at least two to three weeks of the month.' March marks Endometriosis Action Month, and the charity says those with the condition face an average of nearly nine years before receiving a diagnosis. Jones found some relief when she was prescribed the contraceptive pill at the age of 18, but by 26 the effects had worn off. The following year, the Londoner came across a post online about someone else's endometriosis diagnosis. 'She had listed all of these symptoms such as painful periods, pelvic pain and being extremely tired all the time. I identified with 90% of the things she had been living with' Jones went to see a doctor immediately. 'I told her I wanted to be referred to a gynaecologist – I wasn't taking no for an answer this time. 'After years of being told nothing was wrong with me, for once I had felt like I had a voice.' Then followed nine months of scans and laparoscopic surgery before finally being diagnosed with endometriosis when she was 28 years old. 'I remember asking the anaesthetist if they found anything when I woke up from surgery,' Jones says. 'They did and I remember being in floods of tears. I had been gaslit for so long.' At that stage the doctors had found endometriosis on the right side of Jones' bowel and on her abdominal wall – which they would need to remove. To help with the pain she had a contraceptive coil fitted. 'Getting the coil [fitted] felt like a bomb [had] exploded inside me, but after six months it changed and for the first time in my life I felt like those girls that say they don't really have any issues with their period.' The relief was short lived though and six months later she was advised take a nasal spray to suppress her hormones, in an attempt to trick her body into thinking it has gone into menopause. 'I went through all the menopausal symptoms for six weeks with no sleep and intense sweating.' Jones finally had surgery in May 2024, at a private hospital, after the endometriosis had spread to the outside of her womb, causing her large intestine to stick to it – and the organs had to be separated. 'Although they have got rid of everything, which is great, my life since then has been a real shadow of itself,' says Jones. 'I'm a very active person and I'm still not fully recovered. 'I have physio every once or two weeks. I have assistance at work and even airports. I can't walk long distances or carry heavy things. It is getting better but its approaching 10 months of recovery now.' Jones – now an ambassador for Endometriosis UK – is keen to make sure young girls are taught the difference between a normal period and what endometriosis is. 'When you're a 14-year-old girl, you are already going through so many changes in your body. I didn't even have the vocabulary to express myself. 'Now as a grown woman, I have needed therapy. I didn't anticipate my recovery would take this long and some days are challenging to the point I just think, What is the point in going to work or doing anything because I'm in so much pain?' Jones says she's now 'very open' talking about her diagnosis at work. 'I will always take my small hot water bottle and painkillers with me to the grounds when I'm working at matches. I really don't care and I will openly tell people if I'm having a bad day. 'So often people will look at me and think I'm OK because I'll go to work and show up and they can't fathom there is something wrong with me. Sometimes I feel like I have to justify why I need assistance or if I'm walking slowly. She says: 'To any woman who feels like something is not OK with her body, I would say push to see a gynaecologist. Listen to that inner voice. 'We need to talk about periods. We are all here and alive because women have periods. If you're not going to talk about that and look into it, we are doing young girls such a huge disservice.'
The Independent
07-03-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Sports presenter Anita Jones on her endometriosis: I felt gaslit by doctors for 14 years
For years, sports broadcaster Anita Jones says she felt 'gaslit' by doctors who insisted 'nothing was wrong', despite being in excruciating pain. The 34-year-old – a presenter for CBS Sports and the Premier League – eventually had surgery last year to treat her endometriosis. According to Endometriosis UK, only 50% of young adults in the UK know what endometriosis is, and many health practitioners – including GPs and A&E doctors – don't recognise the symptoms. This is despite it being one of the most common gynaecological conditions, affecting one in 10 women and those assigned female at birth, from puberty to menopause, in the UK. Endometriosis occurs when cells similar to the ones in the lining of the womb grow elsewhere in the body. These cells can grow and change in response to hormones in the menstrual cycle, causing inflammation, pain and scar tissue. Jones, who has also been a Sky Sports and BBC Sports presenter, first went to the doctors for painful periods at the age of 14. 'My periods were extremely heavy and I could never concentrate in school. When I went to the doctors they told me girls can just have painful periods and nothing was wrong,' she says. 'As I got older, I wasn't just having pain when bleeding. I was having pelvic pain for at least two to three weeks of the month.' March marks Endometriosis Action Month, and the charity says those with the condition face an average of nearly nine years before receiving a diagnosis. Jones found some relief when she was prescribed the contraceptive pill at the age of 18, but by 26 the effects had worn off. The following year, the Londoner came across a post online about someone else's endometriosis diagnosis. 'She had listed all of these symptoms such as painful periods, pelvic pain and being extremely tired all the time. I identified with 90% of the things she had been living with' Jones went to see a doctor immediately. 'I told her I wanted to be referred to a gynaecologist – I wasn't taking no for an answer this time. 'After years of being told nothing was wrong with me, for once I had felt like I had a voice.' Then followed nine months of scans and laparoscopic surgery before finally being diagnosed with endometriosis when she was 28 years old. 'I remember asking the anaesthetist if they found anything when I woke up from surgery,' Jones says. 'They did and I remember being in floods of tears. I had been gaslit for so long.' At that stage the doctors had found endometriosis on the right side of Jones' bowel and on her abdominal wall – which they would need to remove. To help with the pain she had a contraceptive coil fitted. 'Getting the coil [fitted] felt like a bomb [had] exploded inside me, but after six months it changed and for the first time in my life I felt like those girls that say they don't really have any issues with their period.' The relief was short lived though and six months later she was advised take a nasal spray to suppress her hormones, in an attempt to trick her body into thinking it has gone into menopause. 'I went through all the menopausal symptoms for six weeks with no sleep and intense sweating.' Jones finally had surgery in May 2024, at a private hospital, after the endometriosis had spread to the outside of her womb, causing her large intestine to stick to it – and the organs had to be separated. 'Although they have got rid of everything, which is great, my life since then has been a real shadow of itself,' says Jones. 'I'm a very active person and I'm still not fully recovered. 'I have physio every once or two weeks. I have assistance at work and even airports. I can't walk long distances or carry heavy things. It is getting better but its approaching 10 months of recovery now.' Jones – now an ambassador for Endometriosis UK – is keen to make sure young girls are taught the difference between a normal period and what endometriosis is. 'When you're a 14-year-old girl, you are already going through so many changes in your body. I didn't even have the vocabulary to express myself. 'Now as a grown woman, I have needed therapy. I didn't anticipate my recovery would take this long and some days are challenging to the point I just think, What is the point in going to work or doing anything because I'm in so much pain?' Jones says she's now 'very open' talking about her diagnosis at work. 'I will always take my small hot water bottle and painkillers with me to the grounds when I'm working at matches. I really don't care and I will openly tell people if I'm having a bad day. 'So often people will look at me and think I'm OK because I'll go to work and show up and they can't fathom there is something wrong with me. Sometimes I feel like I have to justify why I need assistance or if I'm walking slowly. She says: 'To any woman who feels like something is not OK with her body, I would say push to see a gynaecologist. Listen to that inner voice. 'We need to talk about periods. We are all here and alive because women have periods. If you're not going to talk about that and look into it, we are doing young girls such a huge disservice.'
