Getting tested with no symptoms

[Vic21]

My mum had endometriosis and cousin has it too. I want to get tested for it but I have never had symptoms so will the doctor turn me away? I’m worried about having it from a fertility point of view.

[Hidden]

Hi Vic,It could be useful to reread the list of symptoms for endo to check to see if you have any of them as a first step. The list is rather long,and includes painful periods and so much more.

For people who have pain & discomfort (or other symptoms), a GP can make a referral to a gynaecologist who can request an ultrasound. That sometimes shows things like cysts on ovaries or if the position of the ovaries is different than expected.

There are some risks for surgery, such as a diagnostic laparoscopy, so although this is used to diagnose endometriosis, it is usually done when there will likely be something there to treat during the procedure (it's for more than investigation only). It's also done for people who have discomfort to help reduce pain.

Your concern that you might have endo because of your family background is very real. I completely understand why you would be interested to check.

[Vic21 in reply to Hidden]

Hi June, thank you so much for that! I’ll look into it a bit further x

[MissPickles]

Theres no test as such, it occasionally shows on a scan or MRI if the endo is deep, but usually diagnosis is via laparoscopy, and I doubt a GP would authorise a surgical procedure if you have no symptoms. But you should never worry about talking to them about your concerns, especially given the family history.

Also consider what the benefit of a diagnosis would be vs the risks of the procedure. If you have no symptoms at the moment I guess you maybe thinking of dietary or lifestyle changes to make sure endo doesn't flare up later down the line? If you have family history of endo it would be beneficial to start those things anyway, even without a diagnosis

[Vic21 in reply to MissPickles]

Thank you, that’s really helpful to know. I never thought of lifestyle changes etc, definitely a lot to think about x

[Charlie1988]

Hey. If you have no symptoms then it is probably unlikely you have it. Be honest with the doctor about your worries and what family members you have with it and see what they say. They may say to try when you are ready for children and if you have any problem to go back and they will do test then If needed. Most doctors tend to not like to do tests for things unless it is necessary. Especially invasive ones. And endometriosis symptoms or obvious. So I would expect.you would know if you had it. Or at least know something is wrong. My advice would be to have a chat with your doctor and see what they say. But ultimately not to worry. It is often best to not go looking for problems and just live your life. Especially since you don't have symptoms. Just because you have family members with it doesn't mean you will have it thankfully. Hopefully the doctor can help to give you fertility advice for when you are ready to conceive. And if (hopefully not) you do have problems you can go back and fingers crossed it will usually be something fixable, like stress or possibly low vitamin levels or something. Also it isn't always the woman who needs to have tests done. I wish you the best of luck. And remember to try not to worry as stress can cause a whole lot of health problems.

[Vic21]

Hi Charlie, thank you so much, you have made me feel a lot better about it and put my mind at rest. Your 100% right to not worry, I’ll take all your advise on board x

[TennisAM]

Understandable that you're worried. Agree with the comments below to have a look at the longer list of symptoms again. Sometimes some women have bowel symptoms as their primary symptoms and nevertheless they have endo.

Please ignore the comments about you being unlikely to have it if you don't have symptoms. I have 3 friends with endo that have no symptoms. 2 of which only found out because of their baby scans. It's possible to have endo and be asymptomatic.

Are you trying to conceive at the moment? If not, I wouldn't worry about it wait and see what happens. You could ask your GP about this and see what they say, explain its a hereditary issue.

I would ask your doc to do all the hormone testing so that you will hopefully feel better that you're in a good position to conceive. Such as progesterone to check you're ovulating.

[Jackie990]

Hey Vic,I understand wanting to know if you have endometriosis as it runs in your family and you said you have no symptoms but....have you had issues with fertility? Are you trying to conceive and not been able to? If that's the case I think it definitely warrants a talk with your doctor. But as some of the other women have stated most doctors won't do laparoscopic surgery unless there are symptoms and they expect to find something and treat when they go in. I suggest talking with your doctor and if you feel they are not listening, get another opinion. Your worries are real. It would be so much easier if there was another way to verify endometriosis other than a surgery...maybe in the future. Just don't be afraid to advocate for yourself and talk to your doctor.