A Laois Senator held an information night to promote better care for women suffering with endometriosis.

Sinn Féin Senator Maria McCormack organised this event on Wednesday April 23, alongside party leader Mary Lou McDonald, who was also in attendance on the night.

The party leader welled up upon hearing the heartbreaking stories from Laois women who suffer with endometriosis.

Senator McCormack spoke to the Leinster Express / Laois Live on the struggle Laois women face with endometriosis, and the emotional night that was held.

"There has been more research into male balding than there has into endometriosis, a disease that affects the vital organs," she said.

Above: an emotional social media post from Mary Lou McDonald on Wednesday's information night in Portlaoise.

"Laois is a small area, but we had to go source more chairs three times last night. The room was packed and people were standing. When I first spoke about endometriosis on March 5 in the Seanad, I received an overwhelming outpour of thanks and stories from women affected," she said.

"I knew about endo as someone close to me has it and has been failed by the system. So many Irish women have been, I do believe that the figure is higher than one in ten," she said.

"Women have been put into chemical menopause, given unnecessary hysterectomies, and they have been abandoned and left in pain. It's heartbreaking and so wrong that in 2025, this is the state of our health system. How many more health scandals do we need?" she asked.

Pictured: Sinn Féín leader Mary Lou McDonald with Laois Sinn Féín Senator Maria McCormack

Endometriosis (commonly referred to as endo) is a disease with no known cause or cure. 

When a woman is menstruating, the lining of her womb is shed through her period. With endometriosis, the lining of the womb (endometriosis lesions) grows on organs outside of the womb, and is commonly found on the uterus, bowel and bladder. In some cases, endometriosis can grow within the lungs and throat.

The growth of endometriosis causes the organs to painfully contract, causing pain of a level similar to childbirth, leaving many women bedbound or in wheelchairs due to the severity of the pain.

One in ten women in Ireland have endometriosis, of varying levels of severity. The only way to diagnose endometriosis is through surgery, as the lesions do not appear in scans.

With no cure available, a surgery called ablation is used to help relieve the pain, where the endometriosis is burned off the organs. However, it is much like cutting a weed rather than pulling it; for many women, the lesions may grow back within two or three years.

"Women are left for nine years, waiting for a diagnosis, with many women travelling abroad for surgery," Senator McCormack said.

Pictured: Mary Lou McDonald and Maria McCormack with other speakers on the night

"In the time it takes them to be seen, the endometriosis has grown on vital organs. Speaking alongside me last night was Jess Ni Mhaolain, a woman who appeared in the Prime Time special on endometriosis two years ago.

"She was forced to undergo a hysterectomy at 26 years of age. In the time since the Prime Time special, things still have not changed," she said.

"We don't have the care or training in Ireland to perform the excision surgery, where the endometriosis is cut out rather than burned off. There is no cure to it, but you can treat it and keep it under control. We can help women go on to live relatively normal lives, and so many women in Ireland have been left without parts of their organs, living in excruciating pain," she said.

Also attending the night was 18 year old Nikita Clarke, who wrote a letter to Mary Lou McDonald on her endometriosis journey.

"At just 18, Nikita is in a wheelchair due to her pain," Senator McCormack said.

Pictured: Laois Sinn Féin with Mary Lou McDonald on the night

"For three years, her mother has been bringing her from doctor to doctor, explaining the pain that she is in. The doctors removed her appendix, and couldn't see anything wrong with her.

"They told her it was her mental health, until finally she had a laparoscopy and was diagnosed with severe endo. Now, Nikita is travelling to Romania to receive the surgery she needs. She is just one of many women failed by our health system," she said.

"These women have been fighting for so long, we had Kathleen King from Donegal speaking on the night, who has been advocating for endometriosis care for over 28 years. The Government has created 'enhanced endometriosis clinics', and never involved women suffering with endo in their creation.

"These centres do not offer the excision surgery, and they don't have multi disciplinary services. We are leaving women for over nine years, losing time and doing irreversible damage," Ms McCormack argued.

"We are offering unnecessary hysterectomies and outdated treatments, we need more awareness, we need our specialists trained and these clinics properly staffed," she said.

Pictured: Laois Senator Maria McCormack

"The Government is pumping money into these super hubs, yet women are being sent home with paracetamol and hot water bottles. When they go abroad with the same symptoms, they receive the surgery they require."

Senator McCormack expressed her delight at Mary Lou McDonald's involvement in the night.

"It's so great that she is involved, since i have spoken about it to her she has lobbied so much. She couldn't believe the stories she was told last night, she cried along with most of the people in the room," Senator McCormack said.

"I promised on Wednesday that this is only the beginning, it's not my campaign, myself and Mary Lou are spearheading it,  but this campaign belongs to the women with endometriosis who are at the heart of it.

"I want to use my platform to give them a voice. We will protest outside of Leinster House until women don't have to get on a plane to receive treatment. Minister for Health Jenifer Carroll McNeill must be called out on this," the Sinn Féín senator finished.

Senator McCormack is also holding an event promoting zero tolerance towards domestic violence, and is appealing for support of this event through the wider Laois community.

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