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From 4,100 to more than 12,000: the tablets more women are finally being offered

Qurexa Editorial Team27 October 20267 min read 0 0
From 4,100 to more than 12,000: the tablets more women are finally being offered

What happened

On Monday 26 October 2026, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published new figures on two tablets used for endometriosis and fibroids. NICE is the body that decides which treatments the NHS in England should offer. It had already recommended both medicines. The question was whether they were actually reaching patients. The figures say they are. Between April 2025 and March 2026, more than 12,000 people in England were given one of these tablets by their GP. The year before, the number was 4,100. That is almost three times as many. The total amount used across the NHS also more than tripled, from 1.2 million tablets to 3.7 million. The two medicines are called relugolix combination therapy, often shortened to relugolix CT, and linzagolix. They are taken by mouth, every day. NICE points out that the real number of people treated is higher than 12,000. That is because treatment usually starts in hospital, and the GP figures mainly pick up repeat prescriptions after that. NICE also published the stories of three women who have taken them. Lucy Ford has lived with endometriosis since her first period, aged 13. Rather than face more surgery when her symptoms came back in 2024, she started relugolix CT in January this year. "It's been life-changing for me," she said. "I'm almost pain-free now."

Why this matters

Endometriosis and fibroids are common, painful and often badly handled. In endometriosis, tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows in other parts of the body. It affects roughly 1 in 10 women of reproductive age. In the UK it takes an average of nine years to get a diagnosis. Fibroids are growths in or on the outside of the womb. They are not cancer. They are more common in Black women, who can get more severe symptoms at a younger age. Both can cause heavy bleeding, exhaustion and pain severe enough to stop someone working. For a long time, the main options were hormone injections or surgery. A daily tablet is a different kind of choice, and for some women it means not needing an operation at all, or coping better while they wait for one. Clare Gallagher, 46, started the tablets in October 2025 while she was waiting for a hysterectomy. "The pain was so severe I couldn't do anything," she said. After an early flare-up, the medicine helped. "I could go to work, whereas the pain I used to get would put me in bed." The government's Renewed Women's Health Strategy says too many women have felt ignored, or had their pain dismissed. The three women NICE spoke to said that matched their experience. Lucy said one doctor tried to deny she had ever been diagnosed. "I felt like no one was going to listen to me or believe me."

What the evidence actually says

These figures show prescribing going up. They do not, on their own, show that every woman who could benefit is getting the medicine. They also do not show that the tablets suit everyone. Ruth Ajayi, 45, had fibroid symptoms from her teens and was repeatedly told the pain and heavy bleeding were normal. "I was always flooding and passing out large clots, with incredible pain," she said. She was offered a hysterectomy and chose to try a tablet instead, and has avoided surgery so far. But she has since stopped taking it for now, after pain and hot flushes, and is waiting to see her gynaecologist. She does not regret trying it. "I wish more women knew about this treatment." That is an honest picture of how medicines work in real life. These drugs lower the hormones that drive the conditions, which is why menopause-like side effects such as hot flushes can happen. Relugolix CT includes add-back hormones designed to reduce that, but side effects still occur for some people. Ruth also raised something the figures cannot measure. She believes the way she was dismissed may have been shaped by racism as well as by a wider pattern of not taking women's pain seriously. "Every time I go to A&E, I have to beg for pain relief," she said. So the fair summary is this: a real option exists, it is reaching far more people than a year ago, and it is not a cure or a fit for everybody.

Qurexa perspective

These are daily tablets, usually started in hospital and then continued as a repeat prescription from a GP. That is exactly the point where good treatment can quietly fall apart. If you are in pain, a trip to the pharmacy is not a small errand. If you are bleeding heavily, it can be the hardest thing in your week. Missed doses are rarely a choice; they are usually a logistics problem. That is the part we work on. Qurexa delivers NHS prescriptions across Lincolnshire and supports people in keeping to the medicines they have been prescribed, including repeat items that need to arrive reliably, month after month. If getting out of the house is the obstacle, we can take that obstacle away. We cannot prescribe, change a dose or decide whether one of these tablets is right for you. Only your clinician can do that. But once a decision has been made, getting the medicine into your hands on time is something we can genuinely help with.

Practical advice

If you have heavy periods, severe period pain, pain during sex, or pain when you go to the toilet, write it down before you see anyone. A short diary of dates, bleeding and pain scores is harder to dismiss than a description from memory. Ask directly whether relugolix CT or linzagolix might be an option for you. Naming a treatment is not rude, and NICE has recommended both for NHS use. If you have already been told your symptoms are normal and you do not believe it, you are allowed to ask for a second opinion, or to ask for a referral to a specialist centre. If you are offered one of these tablets, ask what side effects to expect, how long before you should feel a difference, and when your review will be. Then put the review date in your calendar. If you start a tablet and side effects become hard to live with, do not simply stop and say nothing. Contact the team who prescribed it. There may be an adjustment, or another option. And if you are waiting for surgery, ask whether anything can help in the meantime. Clare's experience shows that "waiting" and "doing nothing" do not have to be the same thing.

What to know

NICE figures published on 26 October 2026 show GP prescribing of relugolix CT and linzagolix in England rose from 4,100 people in 2024-25 to more than 12,000 in 2025-26. Total NHS use rose from 1.2 million tablets to 3.7 million. Both medicines are daily tablets for endometriosis and fibroids, and for some women they offer an alternative to surgery, or relief while waiting for it. Treatment usually starts in hospital and continues as a repeat prescription. They are not right for everyone, and side effects such as hot flushes do happen. The women NICE spoke to described years of being told their pain was normal, which is the harder problem behind the numbers. If this sounds like you, keep a symptom diary, ask about these tablets by name, and ask when your review will be. Sources: NICE, "'I could go to work again': prescriptions for NICE-recommended endometriosis and fibroid tablets soar", 26 October 2026, https://www.nice.org.uk/news/articles/-i-could-go-to-work-again-prescriptions-for-nice-recommended-endometriosis-and-fibroid-tablets-soar — NHS, "Endometriosis", https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/endometriosis/ — NHS, "Fibroids", https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/fibroids/ This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified healthcare professional. Do not start or stop any prescribed medicine without speaking to the clinician who prescribed it.

#endometriosis#fibroids#NICE#women's health#prescriptions#NHS

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