Currently, it can take years to identify this painful gynecological condition. Scientists may have developed a way to do it in days.
Although endometriosis is both common and painful, and has been recognized since the 1920s, diagnosing the chronic condition can currently take up to 10 years, according to a recent review. One challenge: Although ultrasounds and MRI scans are sometimes used, they are often not definitive. The gold standard for diagnosis is a laparoscopy, a surgical procedure.
Now, Australian scientists have developed a fast track to diagnosis: A simple, accurate blood test that screens for telltale concentrations of certain markers in the blood, which researchers hope to widely distribute this year.
