Endometriosis affects one in ten American women, often causing debilitating pain that keeps them from work or school, yet little is known about the disease. Endometriosis is a condition in which pieces of tissue similar to the lining of the uterus--the endometrium--grow outside of the womb. When a woman menstruates, endometriosis tissue sheds as well, but without having a way out of the body, it forms scar tissue, cysts and adhesions in the abdomen. A recent article in The Guardian argues that despite its prevalence, research for endometriosis is drastically underfunded:
Where diabetes received more than $1 billion in funding each year from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) last year, endometriosis received just $7m. That is down from $14m in 2011. To put that into perspective, for each person believed to have diabetes in the United States, the NIHspends $35.66 annually. For each woman with endometriosis, the NIH spends $0.92.
And some women are still having a hard time convincing others - even their doctors - to take their symptoms seriously.
Endometriosis often ignored as millions of American women suffer
