"We're not willing to leave without an absolute," Desa-Lynch said.
And that's why a group of women and doctors who support the recall of Essure are planning a hunger strike outside of the FDA after their meeting in September.
"Hunger strikes have a 100 percent success rate," Desa-Lynch said. "It's our only chance."
It's a drastic, last-ditch effort that worked for women's suffrage in the early 20th century, and for Guantanamo detainees in the 2000s who demanded better conditions.
"I've never been more ready and willing to go to jail or die for that matter. It's sad that women's health and safety is still not equal in 2015," Desa-Lynch said.
"Besides," she added, "a hunger strike will show the FDA on the outside what their lack of action is already doing to our health on the inside."
It is impossible to know the exact percentage of women who've been implanted with Essure and experienced complications. Both Bayer and the FDA know that 750,000 devices have been sold worldwide.
However, sometimes women will be implanted with multiple Essure devices, despite labels that specifically state that only one coil per tube should be used. One woman may also submit multiple complaints, making the exact number of women with complications difficult to pinpoint.
"From Nov. 4, 2002, Essure's approval date, through May 31, 2015, the FDA received 5,093 Medical Device Reports related to Essure. Starting in mid-2013, there has been an increase in the number of reports received related to Essure," Kotz said.
"The majority of reports received since that time have come from voluntary reporters, mostly from women who have had received Essure implants. Because some adverse events may go unreported to FDA, and because the precise number of implants is not known, FDA cannot provide a percentage to calculate the incidence of these events."
Among those who will be present to show their support for the Essure hunger strike (though they will not be participating) include Erin Brokovich, the legal clerk and single mother made famous from a 2000 film about her life. Brockovich has a website dedicated to filing complaints against Essure and has joined the women in the legal fight against the device. There are several other people and interest groups hurt by the FDA who are joining the "Essure problems" women as well.
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"(This) isn't just about Essure anymore. This is about anyone that's fallen a victim or been hurt by a faulty FDA process, bad laws and lack of oversight," Desa-Lynch said. "The FDA has to much blood on its hands to continued to be ignored."
"I will stay there, I don't care if I'm the last one there," she added. "I'm not leaving until they listen to us."
Mary Farrow worked as a staff writer for Catholic News Agency until 2020. She has a degree in journalism and English education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.