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You Can't Cure Endometriosis

I knew if I went and looked at a few blogs today it would give me some thoughts on something to post. And boy did it ever. It was Nancy's post about the misleading infertility POAS test.

It made me think of these local radio commercials for the other reproductive practice in my area. There are only two in Delaware and I went to the one that doesn't have commercials. And if I was looking to change to the other practice, this would have made me not. One of the patient's husband is talking in the commercial "Dr. So&So cured my wife's endometriosis and now we have a baby!" Gag! OK Dr. So&So, have you explained to these people that endometriosis cannot be cured but only treated? Or are all your patients just stupid and don't really understand infertility? "OK crazy husband, let me set you straight. Once the doctor has cleaned out as much of the endo as they can through surgery, they really can't stop it from coming back, barring putting your wife on Lupron and putting her in menopause. But when she gets off Lupron, it will come back. There is no cure, dude!" That is all I can think about when I hear this commercial.

Heather will now come down off her soapbox and put it away for awhile. Thank you.

Comments

Anonymous said…
The clinic I used does have commercials. I have no idea if anyone makes stupid comments because my stomach wrenches everytime I realize The False Hope Center is on the television and change the channel.
Summer said…
I followed your link and read Nancy's post. I'd been very curious, after seeing the TV commercials, about just what this test could do -- I'd guessed it was a repackaged OPK.

The whole "are you able to get pregnant?" thing pisses me off, too. Of course, I'm pissed off because I personally AM able to get pregnant (did it twice, had one kid) but that hasn't meant that I WILL get pregnant. I'm fertile, my husband's fertile, we don't use birth control, and I haven't gotten pregnant since 2002... which makes me certifiably infertile.

I think you'd be better off buying a Magic 8 Ball to answer your fertility questions. At least that you can re-use for important issues like "should I order Chinese for dinner?"
I didn't know that. Seriously. I thought pregnancy cures endo for lots of people - am hoping it fixes mine up some...
Lots of misinformation out there, Heather, thanks for taking a stand.
nancy said…
Ah. What a fabulous doctor! Able to CURE something that can only be treated. Wow. He must be busy.

I like Summer's advice about using the magic 8 ball to figure it all out.

Hrm. Where is my magic 8 ball?
Anonymous said…
Geez, why not? Why can't the medical community cure all of our ailments? (sigh) What they advertise to give people false hope.
That test is awful, but I bet they're going to make tons of money on it. Same with these new POAS tests that supposedly tell you if you're having a boy or a girl before the ultrasound can show you -- which I definitely have my doubts about.

Speaking of endo -- several years back (before TTC) when I went to 4 or 5 docs w/ pain and ovary weirdness and was trying to get help, I remember one gyno telling me I probably did have endo, but to "just get pregnant, and that would cure it."

Sigh! This same gyno, when I asked her about my low sex drive and wondered about a hormone imbalance or some such, blew me off by saying "people in NYC just don't have as much sex because it's stressful here". Nice!

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