Endometriosis affects 190 million people or 10% of women and girls of reproductive age worldwide, according to WHO. The diagnosis of this disease takes around eight years, today thanks to French researchers a saliva test called EndoTest could revolutionize medicine by offering a faster result.
Endometriosis is characterized by the development of tissue similar to the uterine lining outside the uterus, thereby causing pain and/or infertility. This chronic disease is associated with: sharp and disturbing pain during menstruation, during sexual intercourse and when defecating and/or urinating; to chronic pelvic pain, bloating, nausea and fatigue; and sometimes to depression, anxiety, and infertility.
Researchers from the Lyon start-up Ziwig and the National College of French Gynecologists and Obstetricians could relieve and save the lives of millions of women and girls with this first saliva test.
They have indeed established a link between micro-RNAs and the onset of the disease. These microRNAs are present in urine, blood and saliva and are at least 2,600. This research was carried out on 153 women with the disease and 47 women without the disease. During these experiments, 109 microRNAs were identified as the cause of said disease.
“This simple and non-invasive saliva test is validated by the largest clinical trial ever carried out in this field. It allows the early detection of all forms of endometriosis, even the most complex, with near 100% reliability.”we read in the communicated released this February.
Eberline Nicolas