‘It took eight years to get a correct diagnosis for HS’

There is no cure but a combination of medical and surgical treatments, as well as pain management and lifestyle changes can greatly ease this invasive skin disease, says Áilín Quinlan

Caroline Hill was only 17 when the first abscess appeared under her arm.

About the size of a kidney bean, it was extremely tender and very painful. She put a traditional bread poultice on it she recalls, and the abscess disappeared — but not for long.