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UFE vs. Myomectomy for Large Fibroid

Posted , 11 users are following.

sakura26
sakura26

Hi,

I have a large fibroid that is now 11cm thanks to my wonky perimenopause hormones. I'm 46. I've had it for a while and wish when it was smaller I hadn't listened to my doctor's watch and wait advice and had tried to get it removed vaginally.

Anyway now it's really starting to cause me pain, not just during periods but also back pain in the middle of the night. I tried ulipristal last year and it did shrink it about 2cm but then it grew back. Also I already have very low progesterone so it gave me horrible side effects, anxiety and hair loss. I have no idea how close I am to menopause, my OBGYN says could even be a few more years and I'm worried about the fibroid continuing to grow. I am trying Chinese herbs as a last ditch effort.

But here's my QUESTION : Wondering if anyone with large fibroids has tried UFE vs. myomectomy and can weigh in on pros and cons, advice? I know UFE may not work as well for a larger fibroid and you could still have quite a mass, while surgery has its own risks and a longer recovery. I'm single so have no live-in support. I did find a surgeon who said she would do her best to save everything after visiting a ton of ahole doctors that essentially think women and their organs are disposable if they can't produce children. Wish we could reverse menopause or men went through it the same age, same way!

0 likes, 21 replies

21 Replies

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  • patricia27802
    patricia27802 sakura26

    Edited

    Hi

    I have had both done. Like you they tried to force me to have a Hysterectomy.

    I had the UFE done January 2016. This shrunk my Fibroid from 11cm to 7.5cm. Which dramatically improved my periods which at the time were extreme

    I then had a Myomectomy done Feb 2018. This improved my periods but not by much then the Menopause happened so problem solved.

    Neither procedure shrunk my belly though which was damaged when the Fibroid grew before UFE.

    I have no regrets as I avoided a Hystercetomy which also would not have shrunk the belly.

    If you need advice on either procedure please feel free to message me.

    • sakura26
      sakura26 patricia27802

      Posted

      Hi Patricia,

      Thanks so much for your reply! Why did you have a myomectomy after the UFE? Did the UFE not help enough? Also why was your stomach "damaged" and wouldn't shrink even with diet/exercise after fibroid was gone?

      SO if you could go back in time, would you just do the myomectomy then and skip the UFE? Also how long was your myomectomy recovery? Like how long before you could say drive or work from home? Lastly now that you are in menopause, do you take hormones that help you?

      Thanks!!!

    • betty64519
      betty64519 patricia27802

      Posted

      Hi Patricia27802... I need to decide between the hysterectomy and myomectomy, for most doctors the first one is the easiest way, but I am not sure about it because I don´t want any other problems after the surgery... My fibroid is 10 cm, one dr told me that he could practice the myomectomy as an open surgery and the last one told me that I could choose between myo and hyst both via laparoscopic... I am more convinced to have a myomectomy even when I am not planning to have children in the future, but not sure if this will improve my periods or not, why did you say that the surgery improved your periods but not much? Because menopause arrived? I think my menopause will happen in a couple of years time... I really don´t know what to do...

  • joshuapryce1987
    joshuapryce1987 sakura26

    Posted

    Chinese herbs are not reliable treatments for Fibroids. You need vitamins and feminine health supplements which complement the female health system.

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