Anyone who has struggled with endometriosis will be painfully aware of the difficulties surrounding numerous doctor visits, hospital stays, and tests, grappling with pain that is at times difficult to describe or, in a number of instances, too easily dismissed by those in the healthcare industry. The fact remains that for those living with endometriosis, the health condition is one that can be life altering, with pain so acute that daily activities become a test of merely managing life around the condition. As Jason Abott wrote for The Guardian, 25 years ago the average time it took to diagnose endometriosis in Australia was more than 12 years, but “with greater awareness in the community – often led by the patients – this has reduced to about 6.5 years.”
Even then, 6.5 years is too long which makes the news of government funding to ease the burden for sufferers of endometriosis a significant milestone. Last week Prime Minister Scott Morrison delivered a $58 million promise of funding for endometriosis which will go towards pelvic pain clinics, diagnosis, research and disease management. Now, with other investments from the last four years, more than $80 million in actual and promised funding has been generated for the disease that remains relatively unknown and misunderstood in the wider context of society and medical fields alike.
Thanks to data from the National Endometriosis Clinical and Scientific Trials Network, it was found that the disease affects one in nine Australian women, girls and the gender-diverse community assigned female at birth. In recent years, it’s thanks to endometriosis sufferers and patients that we have come to learn more about the disease and have conversations about the work that needs to be done around it. Celebrities have also come forward to share their own experiences, with Amy Schumer opening up to her fans about the surgery she undertook to alleviate her pain, while Halsey also recently walked the Grammys red carpet just four days after surgery, saying she was “fragile but excited.”
The package outlined by the government will provide funding for two specialist treatment clinics in each state and territory. The new clinics promise to include GPs specialising in women’s health and pain management, as well as nurses, allied health professionals (including the likes of dietitian, physiotherapists and psychologists) and educators. There will also be funding to access MRI scans, and money for patient management plans and research.
The funding is certainly a milestone, but there is still much that needs to be done when it comes to endometriosis. There is still no known prevention, cause or cure when it comes to the disease, and many women face misdiagnosis for years. And as numerous sufferers have said following the announcement, there needs to be greater clarity surrounding where the funding will be sent, with many questioning why it has been allocated to MRI scans when endometriosis can’t be reliably detected through MRI, but rather must be diagnosed through excision surgery and histological testing.
