Labour MP recounts chronic UTI ordeal that left her suicidal, calls for better testing and treatments

Labour MP Allison Gardner told viewers on the ITV programme This Morning that years of chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs) left her in such severe pain she considered taking her own life, and urged changes to testing and treatment for women with persistent infections.

Gardner said she was formally diagnosed with chronic UTI in 2023 after more than a decade of symptoms that she and clinicians now link to menopause. She described episodes of overwhelming pain that "takes over your life and your mind," and said she had contemplated extreme measures, including bladder removal, to escape the condition.

Gardner recounted coping strategies she used during severe flares, including sitting with bags of frozen peas because intense cold eased the pain, and speaking with other sufferers who said they poured boiling water over their legs to find relief. She has previously used her platform in Westminster to highlight what she calls the "misunderstood, under‑researched and underfunded" nature of women's medical conditions.

Health specialists and patient groups say Gardner's experience reflects wider problems in diagnosing and managing recurrent and chronic UTIs. Dr. Catriona Anderson, a specialist in recurrent urogynaecological infections and founder of the Focus Medical Clinic, said standard NHS urine tests detect only about 60% of infections and that short courses of antibiotics can leave bacteria embedded in the bladder wall, where they form protective biofilms and become difficult to eradicate.

"We find the bugs by doing better testing and then put patients on the most appropriate treatment pathway and then their symptoms melt away," Dr. Anderson said, while cautioning that effective treatment can take months. She said she has treated patients who were referred to her before they underwent bladder removal operations.

Charity group Chronic Urinary Tract Infection Campaign estimates about 1.7 million women in the UK live with constant or recurrent UTIs. UTIs are the most common bacterial infection in women, with roughly half experiencing at least one episode during their lifetime. Typical symptoms include abdominal pain, an urgent need to urinate more often, and a burning sensation during urination.

Current NHS guidance recommends a three‑day course of antibiotics for uncomplicated, acute UTIs in women and children, although several studies have found that a five‑day course is more effective for many women. Dr. Anderson and patient advocates say that patients with recurrent or chronic infections often require longer or different antibiotic regimens to break entrenched infections and prevent relapse.

The need to balance longer or repeated antibiotic use against the risk of increasing antimicrobial resistance has been a persistent concern for health officials. Dr. Anderson noted that certain patient groups, including some men and patients with more complicated infections, already receive seven‑day antibiotic courses under standard practice, prompting some women to question why longer treatments are not considered routinely when symptoms recur.

Melissa Kramer, chief executive of the patient group LIVE UTI Free, said three main issues contribute to the problem: inaccurate testing methods, antibiotic courses that are too short to kill off bacteria that cause chronic infection, and a lack of formal recognition of chronic UTI as a distinct medical condition.

Gardner, who has a background in molecular biology and previously worked at the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), said repeated short‑course antibiotics left some bacteria surviving and contributed to cycles of recurrent infection. "I truly believe that all I was doing was breeding antimicrobial resistant bacteria for UTIs because I was clearing maybe 70 per cent of them but then remaining maybe 30 per cent of them were still there," she said. She added that specialised treatment from clinicians such as Dr. Anderson has been life‑saving but that she still fears severe flares.

There may be a new treatment option on the horizon. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) recently approved gepotidacin, marketed as Blujepa, to treat uncomplicated UTIs. The agency said the drug, the first oral antibiotic for UTIs in nearly 30 years from a new class, could be important as drug‑resistant bacteria increase. Dr. Anderson described gepotidacin as "exciting," saying it works by blocking two bacterial enzymes required for replication and therefore may be effective against some drug‑resistant infections.

Doctors will not be able to prescribe the new drug until NICE assesses its clinical and cost effectiveness. Gardner said she is concerned that decisions will weigh cost against the quality of life of patients living with chronic infection. "What worries me is this clinical and cost effectiveness balance because it's making the balance between the two and the quality of life people have," she said.

An NHS spokesperson told This Morning that the health service is "actively addressing" instances in which women's concerns have been dismissed, through education and training and by improving services, including establishing women's health hubs.

Researchers and clinicians say improved diagnostic methods, recognition of chronic UTI as a persistent condition, and new therapeutic options could reduce suffering and prevent serious complications such as sepsis and kidney damage. However, they note that any strategy will also need to consider the public‑health implications of wider or longer antibiotic use and incorporate measures to limit antimicrobial resistance.

Gardner's testimony adds to growing calls from patients, clinicians and campaign groups for more targeted diagnostics, clearer clinical pathways for recurrent infections and timely evaluation of new treatments by health technology assessors. Until changes are made, clinicians warn that many women will continue to experience prolonged pain and disruption from recurrent and chronic urinary tract infections.