Derry woman forced to sell house to pay for endometriosis treatment in Greece

“Getting there slowly but surely. I am exhausted but I’m so glad to have it over me.”

This was an extremely relieved Claire Newton’s description of her post-operative self, speaking to The Derry News about her recent endometriosis surgery in Athen’s Centre for Endometriosis in Greece. 

“I just want to raise awareness about how living with endometriosis affects the lives of thousands of women,” said Claire.

Endometriosis is a chronic disease where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows outside the uterus, most often in the pelvic region, on the ovaries, fallopian tubes or bowel.

This misplaced tissue responds to hormonal cycles, causing pain inflammation, and sometimes scar tissue that can bind organs together and lead to infertility.

“I think it is absolutely crazy, shocking that a woman would have to go to a different country to try and get the treatment she needs,” said Claire.

“Mine's a typical endometriosis story. I was running to doctors for years upon years with heavy, painful periods and was continually fobbed off,” she added.

Derry's Claire Newton who travelled to Greece for endometriosis surgery in January.

“I got my diagnosis in July 2024 of severe and deep, deep infiltrating endometriosis following laparoscopy surgery but I was not offered any surgical intervention in the Western Trust at all. There was no real follow up. I don’t understand  what women are supposed to do. 

“When I went to my outpatient appointment, in July 2025, I was told, because of my age - 37 - I would need to choose whether they would  treat my pain or put me forward for IVF fertility treatment, one or the other. This is because endometriosis severely affects a woman’s fertility.

“To me it would make so much more sense to offer women the surgery that is going to fix the problem, rather than firing IVF at me, someone for whom it is probably not going to work because of the amount of disease I had. It wouldn’t have been an appropriate environment for a pregnancy.

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“I think it is disgusting that was the only choice I was given, as a woman - we’ll either treat your pain or we’ll give you the chance to have a family. I don’t think that’s appropriate. I don’t think that should be the options you are presented with, sitting in an outpatient appointment in Altnagelvin,” said Claire.

“Following my laparoscopy, which was carried out in Belfast, the surgeon sent a letter to Altnagelvin to say, this is exactly what we found and this woman needs to be put on a surgical list,” she added.

“Following that there was a period of time when I heard absolutely nothing. And I was just getting worse and worse. It was just getting so debilitating for me. I was in so much pain every single day. 

“I could barely walk, for someone who loves being outside. I couldn’t even walk the length of the Quay. I would have been in tears with the pain. It was just awful.

“I had loads of days off work. It was impacting my work life and my social life. When you are in that much pain, you don’t want to be going out or involved in anything. I am usually so bubbly and outgoing but the endometriosis took its toll on me over the years.

“I was distraught when I was given the pain treatment or fertility treatment option in Altnagelvin, so my husband Terry and I started to look into our options for my treatment. The only treatment for endometriosis is its excision - its surgical removal and I was not offered that in Altnagelvin,” said Claire.

It was at this point Claire discovered the Athen’s Centre for Endometriosis, a specialist centre for treating the condition.

After a few short emails with consultant Dr Konstantinos Kyriakopoulos, Claire was offered the excision surgery for January 2026. 

“I found it so profound that a stranger could offer me what I had been chasing for years and years here,” said Claire.

“All I had to do was send him a few scans with MRIs that I have had here and the previous surgery diagnosis, and he said, ‘Without a shadow of a doubt, the degree of disease you have is so extreme that you definitely need the excision treatment,’” she added.

“He was also able to give us the idea of a price. As a result, my husband and I ended up selling our house in order to be able to afford the surgery, which ended up costing us £20,000. 

“After a seven-hour operation, I actually ended up needing my bowel resected - 15cms of my bowel had to be cut out and the two pieces joined together again - due to a 2cm nodule that was blocking my bowel. 

“I feel so lucky that I found out about Athen’s Centre for Endometriosis. Their care was phenomenal. But we wouldn’t have been able to access that care if we hadn’t sold our home. It doesn’t really leave women living with endometriosis with a lot of options. 

“I think it is crazy this is what it has come to. I have been chasing down appointments for years. I feel so sorry for the women sitting waiting on letters coming from Altnagelvin. I was diagnosed more than 18 months ago and I was not even on a surgical list. I would love to know the thinking behind that if you know the only cure for me was surgery,” said Claire, who added she was told by a health professional in Altnagelvin, in March 2025, there had been no endometriosis surgery in the hospital since March 2024.

A Spokesperson for the Western Health and Social Care Trust (Western Trust) said: “We are unable to comment on individual patients for confidentiality reasons.

“However, the Trust can confirm that endometriosis surgery is offered on the Altnagelvin Hospital site, which is an accredited endometriosis centre.”