Omaha physician assistant raises Endometriosis awareness

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Endometriosis affects more than 6 million American women between the ages of 15 and 44, and it has no cure.

A new effort from the White House is looking to improve the ability to treat the condition. On March 18, President Biden signed an executive order dedicating $200 million to women’s health research including supporting efforts related to endometriosis.

In her 32 years in medicine, Cheryl Lindly has seen many women just like her who battled Endometriosis.

“I would feel ill between rooms and I would have to go lay down in a room for a few minutes. Kind of breathe through it and go through it and then go on to my next. That’s like every woman that goes through every working day, trying to function through that pain,” said Lindly, a physician with Think Whole Person Healthcare.

The pain led to Lindly getting a hysterectomy at age 35.

“Surgery is never the option you want to go to, but it was either that or not function,” she said.

Endometriosis is where tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside of it. It causes severe cramps, often mistaken for the usual menstrual cycle.

Not only is it hard to diagnose, but also hard to treat.

“There’s no blood test to detect it. you have to be invasive to make that kind of diagnosis,” Lindly told 6 News.

According to Lindly, a mRNA blood test is being worked on to help diagnose Endometriosis, but it’s not quite there.

In the meantime, she hopes the money from Washington will create more equitable health outcomes so women won’t keep fighting through the pain.

“If we can move forward with making care for any female issues more affordable, more accessible, less intimidating, that’s what we need to be doing.”