Doctors and advocates call for more resources to support those with endometriosis
There's no cure, and hundreds of thousands of women suffer from it. But, at last, there’s a potential game-changer for sufferers of the painful condition, endometriosis. New specialist clinics have sprung up around Australia, many of them had long waiting lists before they even opened their doors.
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00:00 Hi Leanne, come through.
00:08 Good to see you again.
00:09 Come in.
00:11 When you come in here you know that you're in a safe space.
00:14 Just try to keep these muscles nice and relaxed.
00:16 Leanne Williams suffers from endometriosis, otherwise known as endo.
00:22 It almost feels like a hot poker in your bottom and someone twisting it.
00:27 It's been so painful at times that she's ended up in hospital emergency, but on one occasion
00:33 staff thought she was a drug addict.
00:35 I was screaming in pain and for someone to look at you and go, "Oh, he's an addiction
00:41 broacher."
00:42 It's pretty condescending and it shows a lack of understanding and a lack of empathy.
00:49 Fast forward three years and Leanne has come a long way in her battle to be believed.
00:56 She's one of the first patients to use this new federally funded clinic in suburban Perth,
01:02 dedicated to endometriosis and pelvic pain.
01:05 22 of the centres have opened up around Australia in recent months, offering relief from long
01:12 wait times to see specialists in the public system.
01:16 Probably almost a two year wait is my understanding for assessment of these patients.
01:21 In that time, ongoing pain and suffering occurs.
01:24 Are you maybe able to just describe the pain to me a little bit?
01:28 Patients are screened for up to an hour before their first visit.
01:31 It's a one stop shop, offering various treatment and pain management options, including pelvic
01:37 health physio.
01:39 We see the pelvic floor becoming really tense and that can be a large driver to their pain.
01:45 Endo happens when tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows elsewhere, usually around
01:50 the ovaries.
01:51 It's common in one age group, one in seven women have got it.
01:56 At the opening of another of the clinics on the Gold Coast recently, advocates welcomed
02:01 the new facilities, but said not enough GPs were referring their patients to them.
02:06 Take their patients seriously when they present with pelvic pain and not just say, oh it's
02:12 normal to have pain with your period.
02:14 Well it's not.
02:15 Thank you, thank you so much.
02:17 GPs believe a lot of progress has been made on women's health generally in the five years
02:23 since Australia launched a national action plan to tackle the chronic disease.
02:28 With 50% of our GPs now being women, this is a problem that is a common one that we
02:34 deal with in general practice.
02:36 This is what's causing your pain.
02:38 Dr Nicole Higgins, who's based in Mackay, says the biggest issue now is providing care
02:44 for women in remote and regional areas.
02:47 Health based solutions are really what's important versus just plonking clinics in certain places.
02:53 The Commonwealth spent nearly $29 million on research to find a cause and a cure for
02:59 endo.
03:00 To put that in proportion, since 2014 the National Health and Medical Research Councils
03:06 spent over $530 million on diabetes research.
03:12 Advocates say endo should receive a similar investment, given its impact.
03:17 The cost to the economy is estimated to be around $9.7 billion.
03:24 In the meantime, many patients face the heartbreaking side effect of struggling to have children.
03:29 Leanne has overcome that challenge with baby Orlando to prove it.
03:34 It's been since I stopped breastfeeding him that I've had an increase in pain.
03:41 Advocates hope these clinics can offer alternatives to the heavy drugs many patients rely on.
03:49 Until a cure is found, they're only likely to get busier.
03:52 [BLANK_AUDIO]