New Non-Invasive Tests for Endometriosis Diagnosis Recommended for NHS

People who think they may have endometriosis - a painful condition affecting one in 10 women - will soon be able to ask their GP for a couple of non-invasive tests for quicker diagnosis.

Experts hope they will be a game-changer and cut the nine-year or longer waits patients can currently face.

One is a spit test that looks for genetic material. The other measures electrical signals in the gut using sensor pads on the abdomen.

Both are being recommended under new draft guidance, external for the NHS in England and Wales, alongside regular checks, to help identify the condition where cells similar to those in the lining of the womb grow elsewhere in the body.

Ami Robertson, now 23, says she experienced endometriosis pain from the age of 16, but was repeatedly told she must have something else, such as irritable bowel syndrome.

The symptoms of endometriosis can be hard to identify and can overlap with other conditions.

Ami paid privately for checks that finally confirmed her diagnosis and she went on to have surgery.

The Pilates instructor from Glasgow, said: "I started to doubt myself, wondering if it was all in my head.

"No one should have to wait years to be believed."

Sharan Uppal, 46 and from Huddersfield, says it took years to get her daughter Simran diagnosed.

"I lost count of how many times I took Simran to the GP.

"We ended up in A&E three or four times, spending over 10 hours on one occasion, and nobody would take ownership."

They paid for the gut test which came back strongly positive.

"It gave me the empowerment to go back to our GP and push for a referral. That test opened doors for us to get Simran the help she needed," she says.