Emma Stewart's 10-Year Misdiagnosis Exposes UK Endometriosis Care Failures
Updated
Updated · enablemagazine.co.uk · Aug 20
Emma Stewart's 10-Year Misdiagnosis Exposes UK Endometriosis Care Failures
1 articles · Updated · enablemagazine.co.uk · Aug 20
Summary
More than 10 years after symptoms began, Scottish lawyer Emma Stewart was finally diagnosed with extensive endometriosis only after insisting she be put on a laparoscopy list.
Surgeons found her pelvis "riddled" with disease after years in which severe period pain, vomiting and repeated hospital visits were dismissed as normal and misattributed to IBS, chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia.
Around 1.5 million people in the UK live with endometriosis, and the average time to diagnosis now exceeds nine years, according to Endometriosis UK.
At 30, Stewart still lives with daily pain, has taken up to 21 strong painkiller tablets a day, and says weak aftercare and "medical misogyny" leave patients struggling with fertility fears, work and relationships.