ENDOMETRIOSIS AWARENESS WEEK

Early day motion 1759, tabled 7 March 2006 by Annette Brooke (Liberal Democrat). Signed by 84 members.

That this House welcomes Endometriosis Awareness Week, on 6th to 12th March; congratulates the National Endometriosis Society and the SHE Trust on their success at putting endometriosis as a medical condition on the political agenda; recognises that endometriosis can severely impact on a woman's quality of life due to chronic pain, infertility, the inability to complete an education or sustain a career; notes that there is a significant financial implication to the individual and the state with an estimated £2.8 billion cost just from days lost at work due to delayed and incorrect diagnosis as well as ineffective hit-and-miss treatments; is concerned that endometriosis, which takes an average of eight years to diagnose, is still a relatively unknown disease despite an estimated two million sufferers in the UK; fears that endometriosis is not a current national or primary care trust priority; encourages the scientific community to bring forward high quality research applications on endometriosis to the Medical Research Council; and urges the Secretary of State for Health to accord this the utmost importance to ensure that women in the UK with endometriosis receive earlier diagnosis and the specialist care they need but which many are presently not receiving.

Signatures by party: Labour 43, Liberal Democrat 23, Conservative 8, DUP 5, Social Democratic and Labour Party 2, Plaid Cymru 1, Respect 1, UUP 1.