Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to increase the capacity of specialist services for diagnosing Endometriosis.

The Government acknowledges the challenges faced by women with endometriosis and the impact it has on their lives, their relationships, and their participation in education and the workforce.

We are committed to improving the diagnosis, treatment, and ongoing care for gynaecological conditions including endometriosis, and we have already taken action to address this.

NHS England is updating the service specification for severe endometriosis which will be published in due course. This will improve the standards of care for women with severe endometriosis by ensuring specialist endometriosis services have access to the most up-to-date evidence and advice. This is considering specialist care for thoracic endometriosis.

Research has led to new treatments being made available, including the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence approval of two pills to treat endometriosis this year, Relugolix and Linzagolix. Both are estimated to help approximately 1,000 women with severe endometriosis for whom other treatment options haven’t been effective.