New University of Hull test for endometriosis could speed up diagnosis

A new test could reduce the time it takes to diagnose a condition which causes chronic pain for thousands of women.

Endometriosis causes cells similar to those in the lining of the womb to develop elsewhere in the body, especially in the bowel and reproductive organs.  They react to the menstrual cycle each month and also bleed.  There is no way for the blood to leave the body, which causes inflammation, pain and the formation of scar tissue.  If left untreated it can lead to organ damage and infertility.

It currently takes an average of eight years to receive a diagnosis, but a test developed at the University of Hull could cut that to just eight days.

Charity Endometriosis UK estimates that around 1.5 million women are living with the condition in Britain.

Dr Barbara Guinn, lead researcher and reader in biomedical sciences at the University of Hull, said a quick urine test could help identify sufferers before serious damage is done.

The test could be carried out at clinics and GP surgeries, whereas at the moment women have to be referred to a specialist clinic and go through an invasive surgical procedure to be diagnosed.

Dr Guinn said “We want women to be able to have this urine test and much more quickly go to the right treatment and the sooner we treat endometriosis, the less invasive it is.  The less damage it causes and that’s better for patients, but also for the NHS.”

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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (jacquelinevance@chadlaw.co.uk), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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