What do you get when you pair a disease of epidemic proportions like endometriosis with a severe lack of insurance coverage? A very clear picture of how women are hurting and how the socio-political and economic gaps in healthcare aren’t helping. The Blossom takes a look at some of the staggering statistics they face today.
$22 billion—A woman’s worth is immeasurable, but the losses that the economy sustains when women with endometriosis cannot continuously compete in the workforce is calculable. The U.S. loses an estimated $22 billion a year in productivity stemming from endometriosis. And that number is likely far higher today: that statistic dates back to 2012.
176 Million—The estimated number of women living with endometriosis worldwide. However, that number may be a very conservative estimate. Obstacles to diagnosis abound, as The Blossom has reported, because currently the disease can only be diagnosed through laparoscopic excision surgery and biopsy of tissue that pathology confirms is indeed endometriosis—an expensive procedure that often isn’t covered in-network by many large insurances. This staggering figure could soon soar. The race is on for a non-invasive test to diagnose endometriosis, which would allow more women to more easily, and quickly, receive an accurate diagnosis.
701,592—The number (as of press time) of #endometriosis hashtags on Instagram alone. Just in time for Endometriosis Awareness Month, a new wave of women and their family, friends, and colleagues have helped fuel the discussion of endometriosis by taking to social media to bravely reveal their diagnosis and help lift the stigma of the disease.
100—The number, according to our Honorary Medical Director Emeritus and Senior Medical Advisor of EndoFound, Dr. Harry Reich, of endometriosis excision specialists in America today. “There are over 40,000 OB-GYNs, and most of them do not do advanced laparoscopic surgery,” he explains, “which is required for a difficult endometriosis case.”
10—The estimated number of hours in a workweek that a woman with endometriosis can lose due to time off and doctor visits
0—There still isn’t a cure for endometriosis or one scientific explanation as to what causes the disease, but researchers, some funded directly by The Endometriosis Foundation of America, are trying to unravel that mystery. Still, there are plenty of theories ranging from genetic, to bacterial, to immunological and more.
