Ordeal Mother faces paying for private op to end her pain
SAMANTHA Sutcliffe looks like any other young mum, smiling alongside sons Harry and Albie. But each month the 30-year-old from Tewkesbury is bed-bound and left writhing in agony thanks to a condition that affects one in 10 women.
Endometriosis means Samantha is unable to spend time with her boys during her menstrual cycle, due to heavy bleeding and pain.
She has already undergone surgery for the condition, which sees tissue similar to the lining of the womb grow in other places, such as the ovaries and other organs.
It can affect women of every age and has been a monthly feature in Samantha’s life since she was 19, having found early on as a teenager when she started her period that she would have unusually heavy bleeding.
A few years later, the condition started to take its toll on her. When she was 17 and at work in a local supermarket, she passed out because the pain was unbearable.
She said: “After I had been diagnosed I had two ablations at 20 and 23 years old. This is where you have an operation to burn off the tissue which has grown and attached itself all around the ovaries.
“In my case, the endometriosis had fused my bladder and bowel together. The longer it goes on, the more it grows, and it feeds off oestrogen and it also produces oestrogen.”
The condition means that in some cases the ovaries can stop working properly.
Samantha has been able to give birth to two sons, the first of them 10 years ago.
She and her husband wanted another child for their first-born Harry and to complete their family, and six years later Albie came along.
“After both pregnancies, the bleeding eased off for a little while,” she said.
“However, a year after having Albie the pain became unbearable. I would say it is tenfold what it ever was before.
“I have asked the consultant to send me on to be considered for an excision. This means basically I have a hysterectomy so the bleeding will stop. I was told at the referral appointment it was not something that would be considered at that hospital.”
Now Samantha feels there is little other choice but to find the funds to have a private operation.
During her menstrual cycle, Samantha is often bed-bound. The bleeding she faces is so heavy she dare not leave the house.
It is physically and emotionally draining, and she feels life is simply passing her by.
Samantha said: “I went back to the GP last summer as I had been referred to the gynaecology team at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.
“Somehow my previous referral had been lost. I have been re-referred, but all in all I have been waiting for 18 months to be seen.
“My boys have said to me they cannot wait till I have this operation as it means that I will be able to run around with them, which is sad as it is something I have not been able to do.”
Although she experienced temporary relief post-pregnancy, the condition has blighted many aspects of Samantha’s life.
She said: “I have tried more than 15 contraceptive pills, along with a marina coil, and medical menopause injections in the past.
“Now I am taking a double progesterone-only pill to stop the bleeding, which doesn’t work, to then have northisterone, to stop a period if I have to.
“All these medications are causing real anxiety and depression sideeffects.”
She added: “I really want to know why the referral is taking so long. Why will they not give me this operation when it is available on the NHS?
“I just want to be able to get some sort of life back. I feel too much time has been wasted already.”
The Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust suggested she talked to the hospital liaison team to help resolve the issues.
A trust spokesman said: “We are sorry that Mrs Sutcliffe is waiting for an appointment to see a consultant after being referred to us by her GP on July 31, 2020.
“Sadly, Covid has meant that our patient lists are longer than we would like them to be and this has in some cases had a negative effect on patients.
“We are doing everything we can to see patients as quickly as possible to ensure they get the care that they need.
“In circumstances where patients feel that they haven’t received the high level of care that we aim to provide every time, we would encourage them to contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service, who can fully investigate any concerns, help reach resolution and, if appropriate, support our teams to learn any future lessons.”