Colleen Crothers - a woman with long, wavy brown hair - smiles at the camera in a room with plain white walls. She is wearing a black or dark green poloneck jumper and a gold necklace
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Colleen Crothers has chronic endometriosis and waited in pain for surgery for years

ByMarie-Louise ConnollyHealth correspondent, BBC News NI
  • Published52 minutes ago

Like thousands of women in Northern Ireland, Colleen Crothers waited decades for medical help to treat chronic endometriosis - and, now thanks to an all-island first, she's hoping her long road will be a thing of the past.

"Robotic surgery came too late for me," she said. "I hope other women won't have to wait as long."

She is talking about a new breakthrough for female patients in Northern Ireland - the Da Vinci gynae robot at Belfast City Hospital.