Infertility physician Jan Friberg has begun using a simple blood test to diagnose early and mild- to -moderate cases of endometriosis in his patients, thus eliminating the need for invasive diagnostic laparoscopy or even a biopsy.
If the blood test becomes commonly used, it may make a difference in the lives of millions of women. Endometriosis occurs when endometrial tissues grow outside their normal home inside the uterus, leading to painful and often destructive internal growths and scarring. This new blood test could catch th disease before it becomes so painful.
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(Allison Williams/Staff Photographer)
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Other gynecologists and fertility doctors have expressed interested in the new blood test, but it has not yet been accepted as a mainstream practice in the medical world. The test measures the levels of inflammatory protein interleukin-6 in the blood stream,
"If we see a patient has elevated interleukin-6, we are fairly convinced we don't need to do a laparoscopy (what's typically done to diagnose endometriosis)," said Friberg, founder of Friberg Medical Associates in Glencoe and Chicago. "Laparoscopy is not a particularly pleasant procedure so it is nicer to be able to do testing this way."
