‘I was misdiagnosed with PCOS, turns out I have endometriosis’

A woman in Kent was shocked after finding out her diagnosis with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), was false and she actually had endometriosis.

The website for the World Health Organisation states: “Polycystic ovary syndrome is a common hormonal condition that affects women of reproductive age…PCOS can cause hormonal imbalances, irregular periods, excess androgen levels and cysts in the ovaries. Irregular periods, with a lack of ovulation, can make it difficult to become pregnant. PCOS is a leading cause of infertility.”

According to the National Institutes of Health, one in ten women across the world have been given a PCOS diagnosis.

Molly Pope from Ashford, Kent was diagnosed with PCOS in the middle of 2024, causing her life to change.

The NHS information page for PCOS states: “There’s no cure for PCOS, but the symptoms can be treated.”

Pope said: “It really affected me. They put me on the contraceptive pill as a form of treatment for my symptoms and it caused me to gain a drastic amount of weight very quickly and caused me to have very bad mental health problems.”

In December 2024, she decided to seek help from the NHS again, demanding for them to refer her to a gynaecologist. From there, she met Dr Martin Farrugia, consultant obstetrician, gynaecologist and minimal access surgeon.

Dr Farrugia’s professional profile reads: “I am now in fulltime independent private gynaecology practice. My special areas of interest include advanced laparoscopic and hysteroscopic surgery.”

He informed Pope that she actually had endometriosis and, after just two months, performed a laparoscopic (keyhole) surgery to remove her endometriosis.

Pope continued: “I couldn’t believe it. If I had been referred to a gynaecologist in the first place, I never would have suffered so badly and I just can’t help but wonder how many people have been told that they have incurable PCOS, when actually, they have endometriosis and can be helped.”

Based on Pope’s story, a survey was conducted with ten students who have been diagnosed with PCOS. The survey revealed that none of those ten young women had ever been referred to a gynaecologist.

The survey also revealed that nine out of the ten women felt that proper help is not available for PCOS.

Five out of the ten women said they were not treated at all, and were just told they had it, whilst three of them were told to lose weight.

19-year-old Phoebe Pritchard said: “It’s a subject severely under researched and…they have no clue on the effects and don’t take into consideration if the patient is struggling.” She continued: “I’ve found out more on my own than I have through any doctor.”

The NHS website states: “The exact cause of PCOS is unknown, but it often runs in families.”

However, women with PCOS are saying that this is not good enough.

Aleena Kazmi, student at Kingston University said: “I wasn’t given enough information by the NHS. They didn’t tell me much except the name [of the condition]. I had to do all my own research.”

After hearing Pope’s story, the young women were asked what change they would like to see for women with PCOS.

Hafsah Aslam, a student at Kingston University said: “Doctors need to diagnose more quickly and give us information on the condition. It took me months for them to finally diagnose me and that was because they didn’t do any proper checks or scans.”

By Elisa Kannur