All articles tagged with #endometriosis
A new study in Advanced Healthcare Materials reports that a modified version of the anti-parasitic drug niclosamide, delivered via a specialized nanocarrier, reduced lesion growth and pain sensitivity in mice with endometriosis. While the therapy remains in preclinical stages, it offers a potential non-hormonal alternative to current treatments that often fail to provide long-term relief.
Researchers at Washington State University have developed a nanotherapy that delivers the anti-parasitic drug niclosamide directly to immune cells associated with endometriosis. In mouse models, this approach reduced lesion growth and pain symptoms after a single dose, offering a potential non-hormonal alternative to current treatments. The study addresses the limitations of oral niclosamide, which has poor solubility and causes side effects, by using a dendrimer nanocarrier to target specific macrophages. While promising, the therapy remains in the preclinical stage, with human trials and FDA approval potentially taking five years or more.
Kate Tolo, girlfriend of tech billionaire Bryan Johnson, is undergoing an intense, $2.6 million-funded health protocol to develop non-invasive diagnostic methods for endometriosis. While Johnson frames the effort as a labor of love, medical experts remain skeptical of the single-subject data, and Tolo has faced physical strain and public scrutiny for her extreme testing methods.
Lena Dunham and husband Luis Felber welcomed their first child, a daughter, via surrogate, with Dunham sharing the birth story in a Vogue op-ed and noting her 2018 hysterectomy for endometriosis as part of her journey to motherhood.
Lena Dunham and husband Luis Felber welcomed a daughter via surrogate, sharing the news in a Vogue op-ed that also recounts her lengthy fertility journey, including endometriosis and a past hysterectomy.
Grace, a 14-year-old from Yorkshire, began experiencing monthly, stabbing abdominal pain at 13 that doctors dismissed as being too young to have endometriosis; after repeated emergency visits and a private second opinion, she underwent a laparoscopy in June which found endometriosis on the back of the uterus and uterosacral ligaments with bowel involvement. While she faces a risk of recurrence, she’s on hormonal treatment to slow growth and has spoken out on TikTok to raise awareness and encourage other young people to advocate for themselves.
A 14-year-old girl from Yorkshire endures crippling period pain after doctors repeatedly dismissed endometriosis as a possibility due to her age; after her family pushes for a second private opinion, she receives a diagnosis and undergoes laparoscopy, highlighting delays in recognizing endometriosis in teens and the need for better menstrual-health education and access to timely investigations.
A BuzzFeed/Yahoo Health piece compiles 25 firsthand accounts of illnesses that are often dismissed as “just pain,” highlighting conditions from IBS with anxiety and celiac disease to chronic migraines, endometriosis, chronic fatigue syndrome and Ehlers-Danlos, showing how these conditions profoundly disrupt daily life and underscoring the need for validation, better care, and support for the people living with them.
A London woman endured 15 years of crippling, misattributed pain—believed to be just periods—leading to the removal of her appendix and gallbladder before doctors finally diagnosed extensive endometriosis and adenomyosis in July this year; the delays left her in chronic pain and potentially affected fertility, fueling advocacy for listening to women's health concerns.
Liv and Molly Smith, sisters from Leamington Spa, endured years of crippling menstrual pain dismissed by doctors as “bad periods” before both ultimately received endometriosis diagnoses following laparoscopic surgery. The experience disrupted schooling, jobs, and intimate relationships, and the sisters emphasize the need for doctors to listen and for more education about the condition. UK experts note noninvasive diagnostic advances under consideration by NICE, but early diagnosis hinges on awareness and proper clinical attention to patients’ symptoms.
A London woman spent 15 years seeking answers for debilitating pain before a July diagnosis revealed endometriosis and adenomyosis, after surgeries removed her appendix and gallbladder—neither of which caused the pain.
A saliva-based test called Endotest detects microRNAs in spit to signal endometriosis, potentially shortening the typical diagnosis wait from as long as 11 years. In the UK, NICE has approved its use in clinician offices for three years, though it is not a stand-alone diagnostic tool. The test aims to speed diagnosis, enable earlier treatment, and reduce invasive procedures for a condition that affects about 1 in 10 women worldwide.
Two non-invasive diagnostic tests, Endotest (saliva microRNAs) and EndoSure (electrical signals from the gut), have been approved for NHS funding to dramatically shorten the wait for an endometriosis diagnosis—from about nine years to days—potentially enabling earlier treatment and reducing reliance on invasive laparoscopy, with patient stories highlighting the relief of a faster, clearer diagnosis.
The NHS in England and Wales will offer rapid, non-invasive endometriosis tests, a move lauded by patients who endured years of pain and invasive diagnoses; it could slash the nine-year average wait for a diagnosis and spare women from multiple hospital visits, though a blood-test diagnostic is still being researched and access will matter.
A UK study identifies a distinctive androgen fingerprint in endometriosis, notably elevated 11-ketotestosterone, pointing to a non-invasive blood test that could diagnose the condition rapidly and reduce the current years-long diagnostic delay; researchers aim to develop the test and explore new treatments, with larger trials needed.