France brings in 20 million euros to treat endometriosis. This can lead to severe abdominal cramps and even infertility. One in ten women will experience it.
Millions of women suffer in silence: this is crazy. Yesterday, French Health Minister Olivier Veran announced that France wants to be a European leader in the fight against endometriosis. This is a chronic disease in which tissue very similar to the lining of the uterus begins to grow outside the uterus. It can settle in different places of the body, such as the ovaries or intestines. The main symptoms are severe cramps and pelvic pain. Scar tissue can cause organs to stick together.
One in ten women will experience it. Girls and women often assume pain is part of their rules. The disease is also still unknown among doctors, which means that referrals to a gynecologist are too late. On average, it takes seven years to diagnose. During that period health care costs rise without there being an immediate solution. This ignorance must be addressed, says Ferran, who released more than 20 million euros yesterday.
President Emmanuel Macron clearer Endometriosis is not only a woman’s problem, but a society’s as a whole. Women with endometriosis are disabled when they want to study, work or play sports. The disease causes pain and nullifies. It is the main cause of infertility.”
The largest database in the world
The French Action Plan has three spearheads: scientific research, improving access to care for all, and raising awareness. France will have the largest database in the world on endometriosis. By integrating and organizing several existing databases, we can track 11,000 women day in and day out, in real time. By comparison, the largest stockpile in existence to date is American and has only about 9,000 women,” Ferran explains. A saliva test will also be developed to detect the disease. This test is less invasive than laparoscopy, and therefore could be used more widely, he writes. Le Parisien† FrenchEndo TestIt can give a definitive answer about the disease after only a few days. “Today patients go through hell if the doctors do not listen to them,” admits Philippe Decamps, a gynecologist at the University Hospital of Angers and vice-president of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO). That’s why Ferran also wants to boost primary care medical training. Teachers must also be able to pick up and relay signals of intense pain. Finally, he wants to include endometriosis in the female students’ health profile, and make gynecological consultations more accessible.
