On the morning of January 12th, 2023, 26-year-old primary school teacher Dena Collins collapsed in her home. After numerous attempts at resuscitation, she was pronounced dead at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, despite visiting the same hospital the previous evening. Dena had been discharged from A&E just the day before but was sent home without the medication that could have saved her life. This is the reality for millions of women worldwide who believe their pain is dismissed and discarded by medical professionals.

The Gender Pain Gap describes the phenomenon of women reporting more instances of chronic pain than men, but also being less likely to be offered timely pain relief. In a survey conducted in 2019, almost half of the respondents claimed they did not think their healthcare providers took their pain seriously. And yet, there continues to be a lack of improvement. In the 2023 Gender Pain Gap Index report, it was revealed the gap had extended from 7% to 11%.

Lack of research, medical bias, and social and cultural factors play a significant role. From contraceptive implants to chronic illnesses, women just like Dena are told they are “hysterical”, “dramatic”, or “emotional” when describing their pain, leading to misdiagnosis, incorrect medicine dosages, and delayed treatments Two years later, Dena’s family is speaking out. “She was just sparkling glitter. And you couldn't help but want to be in her presence”, expresses Clare, her older sister.

Dena’s initial worries arose after a pain in the back of her leg on Saturday the 7th of January, which led to a developing sickness. She was aware of the risk of blood clots, as she was on the combined contraceptive pill and had just completed a course of antibiotics, so sought medical attention the following Monday. The GP’s notes acknowledged the possibility of a blood clot, but Dena was sent home with a diagnosis of “likely muscle strain”, and the appointment was never logged on the NHS system. Two days later, the pain was extortionate, and Dena’s father rushed her to Urgent Care at QEH. Checks for blood clotting problems showed a score of 710, three times the normal level, but Dena was released without the blood-thinning precautionary medication often given to patients at this stage. The following morning, Dena passed away.

While Dena’s family are sympathetic to the pressure NHS workers face, they feel as though the hospital did not take Dena’s concerns seriously. Her sister, Clare, says, “Instead, they sent her home to die in our family home in front of us.” Misogyny in medicine is a growing concern and was raised in a report by the Women and Equalities Committee last month. While Dena’s tragic story highlights the life-threatening consequences of ignored pain, it is not an isolated case.

I spoke to Faith Saunders-Beckwith, a 17-year-old student who was diagnosed with endometriosis after fighting for three years to be taken seriously by her doctors. “I had a lot of moments where I was like, am I really just being dramatic?” she says, “I feel like in yourself, you know when something's wrong, and you know when something doesn't feel right. [...] I feel like a lot of healthcare professionals shut you down. It's this thing of ‘You’re hormonal, you're dramatic, simply there's nothing wrong.’ Finally, someone listened to me. [...] I had an ultrasound, they didn't see anything on the ultrasound, and then I was sort of disregarded again, and it was back to square one.”

Endometriosis is a long-term condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows in other places, such as the ovaries and fallopian tubes. Common symptoms include pelvic or lower back pain, pain during or after sex, and heavy or irregular periods. For some women, this condition exceeds physical agony and can lead to infertility, anxiety, and depression, having a huge impact on their lives. One in ten women live with endometriosis, yet it can take anywhere from four to eleven years to receive a diagnosis. While one in three women in the UK will suffer from a reproductive or gynaecological health problem, the lack of research into female health is staggering. There is five times more research into erectile dysfunction, which affects 19% of men, than into premenstrual syndrome, which affects 90% of women.

As demonstrated by the tragic case of Dena Collins and the ongoing struggles of girls like Faith Saunders-Beckwith, the dismissal of women’s pain by healthcare professionals is not only damaging, but also life-threatening. Until healthcare systems acknowledge and address the Gender Pain Gap, countless women will continue to suffer in silence, their pain unheard, unacknowledged, and untreated.