The government is targeting 2025 for the provision and reimbursement of a saliva test to detect endometriosis, Catherine Vautrin, Minister of Labor, Health and Solidarity, said on Thursday.
“This is our objective”, but “this requires a final validation by the High Health Authority”, declared Catherine Vautrin on France 2.
Before arriving at reimbursement for the saliva test from the French company Ziwig, “which costs around 1,000 euros” according to the minister, we must wait for the results of a new clinical study on 3,000 women.
After this campaign, the government will be able to “release the budget which will allow tomorrow 10,000, 20,000 women to be able to benefit” from the test, “reimbursed”, she said.
Endometriosis is a chronic disease that affects around one in ten women.
It usually results in severe pain during periods and/or fertility problems.
And so far, this disease is diagnosed somewhat randomly and with an average delay of seven years.
In January, the High Authority for Health deemed a saliva screening test “promising” and “innovative” based on a study involving 1,000 women.
But she also underlined the need to “conduct additional studies” before deciding on the advisability or otherwise of long-term reimbursement.
Developed by the Lyon biotech Ziwig, this test, called Endotest, “showed very good diagnostic performance”, underlined the HAS, which took action in order to evaluate its effectiveness and clinical usefulness.
“A final validation by the High Authority of Health”
While expectations are high, Catherine Vautrin, the Minister of Health, announced that the government is targeting 2025 for the availability and reimbursement of this test.
“This is our objective”, but “this requires a final validation by the High Authority of Health”, she told Catherine Vautrin on France 2.
One of the main associations of endometriosis patients, ENDOmind, was “delighted by the desire to be able to benefit French women from this French innovation through reimbursement for the test”, but considered it “dramatically undervalued” the figures of “3,000 tests reimbursed in 2024 and 10,000 to 20,000 tests in 2025”.
“The test must be made accessible to all people who need it, particularly those in medical deserts and without access to imaging,” argued the association.
In addition, on endometriosis, Catherine Vautrin also announced “educational work with businesses” and “a national information campaign”.
A guide will be distributed in companies to help managers “understand and act” and remind people of “points of vigilance, such as respect for medical confidentiality, the need to carry out awareness-raising actions to break the taboo and fight against stereotypes” .