BBC news presenter Naga Munchetty has spoken about her difficult struggles with adenomyosis, a medical condition that affects 1 in 10 women, yet a condition that is not often discussed
Adenomyosis is a uterine disorder where the cells that normally form a lining inside the uterus, also grow in the muscle wall of the uterus. The displaced tissue continues to act normally every month which means thickening, breaking down and bleeding during each menstrual cycle. This eventually causes the related symptoms and makes the uterine walls grow thicker. This can lead to symptoms such as heavy or prolonged menstrual bleeding, severe menstrual cramps, and chronic pelvic pain.
Cruely, it can cause significant pain and discomfort for those who have it, and can have a significant impact on a person’s quality of life. This is hard enough for any woman having to go about her daily life, but imagine then, how difficult it must be if you are live on air, as Naga is every morning on BBC Breakfast television, or presenting a radio show like she does on Radio 5!
Munchetty said a flare-up at the weekend was so painful that her husband called an ambulance after she screamed for 45 long minutes.
In a similar way to endometriosis, Naga had struggled to obtain a diagnosis and treatment after decades of painful, heavy 10-day periods that sometimes made her pass out.
She told her Radio 5 Live listeners: “Right now as I sit here talking to you: I am in pain. Constant, nagging pain. In my uterus. Around my pelvis. Sometimes it runs down my thighs. And I’ll have some level of pain for the entire show and for the rest of the day until I go to sleep.”
Treatment options for adenomyosis may include medication to manage pain and inflammation, hormonal therapies to control symptoms, or in severe cases, surgery, such as a hysterectomy, to remove the uterus.
If you have been diagnosed with adenomyosis and would like to share your story, please do drop us a line at mystory@ivfbabble.com.
Learn more about adenomyosis from Michalis Kyriakidis MD, M.Sc. Gynecologist in Reproduction at Embryolab Fertility Clinic
