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This Thursday, Catherine Vautrin, Minister of Health, was the guest of “4 Truths” on France 2 where she announced that the Endotest, capable of diagnosing endometriosis by a simple saliva test, would be accessible and above all reimbursed from 2025.
Great news for all women who suffer from endometriosis or who are wondering: the Endotest, the diagnostic saliva test currently being studied in an innovation package could be offered as first-line treatment and covered from 2025 , according to an announcement from Catherine Vautrin, Minister of Health. One in 10 women suffer from endometriosis, the diagnosis of which often takes too long.
Towards validation and support for the test
Guest of 4 Vérités on France 2 this Thursday March 7, the minister indeed regretted a “real error in terms of diagnosis” of endometriosis. To put a stop to this, she announced that the government was taking action so that Social Security could fully cover,“in January 2025” the mentioned saliva test which would allow non-invasive detection of endometriosis.
“We still have an experiment on 3,000 women until the end of the year, and the elements are extremely interesting”, she clarified. “We will definitely validate this to free up a budget to allow women to benefit from this test.” In total, between 10,000 and 20,000 women should be able to benefit from this test, which costs around 1,000 euros, estimates the minister.
As a bonus, the minister announces an effort information from companies which must learn to deal with this feminine reality: “Obviously, medical confidentiality must be respected but it is important to explain to human resources departments that today there is a pathology which affects women, who generate consequences on their health, serious consequences and who require absences”
A non-invasive test that can be offered from the start
If the deadlines are met, this announcement represents a real boost in the arrival of this device. On January 8, in fact, the High Authority of Health (HAS) took action in order to evaluate the effectiveness and clinical usefulness of the Endotest® saliva diagnostic test, designed by Lyon biotech Ziwig. It then only announced early access, for the moment, to certain women as part of an “innovation package”. Furthermore, the HAS, which recognized very good diagnostic performance for Endotest® (95% sensitivity and 94% specificity), only considered the usefulness of the saliva test as a 3rd line in diagnostic research:
- In patients aged 18 and over of childbearing age, for whom endometriosis is strongly suspected and presenting pelvic pain not controlled by empirical medical treatment or having a desire to become pregnant;
- To reduce the number of unnecessary laparoscopies performed in these patients, when the reference imaging findings are negative or uncertain.
But according to the words of Catherine Vautrin, upon validation by the HAS, the test could be the examination by which “would begin” the diagnosis.
A simple collection of saliva read by AI
Today, the diagnosis of endometriosis is based primarily on a clinical examination, and 2e intention on an imaging assessment (a Pelvic ultrasound and an Pelvic MRI). A laparoscopy can be considered, to confirm the diagnosis of endometriosis, if a surgical therapeutic project shared with the patient is associated with it. But like any surgical procedure, the laparoscopic examination is invasive and does not guarantee improvement.
The saliva test turns out to be much simpler. This involves taking a little saliva, which contains micro-RNA and which could be collected by the patient herself, in order to be sequenced and read by artificial intelligence in a specialized medical biology laboratory.
In the opinion of Dr Odile Bagot, gynecologist and member of our expert committee. This would be one of the most anticipated innovations in women’s health today. Interviewed in January, she explained to us: “As a gynecologist I have been expecting a lot for a long time. But we will still have to wait. The High Authority of Health has just given exceptional authorization. This is not enough when the vast majority of gynecologists are not trained in pelvic ultrasounds in endometriosis. Hopefully this aspect progresses this year.”
A wish granted just before International Women’s Rights Day!