SHARES
Newly married Jane dreads that time of the month, when she suffers from heavy periods and pain. She is also wondering why she has uncomfortable bloatedness, constipation and difficulty in urinating all the time? She consulted her gynaecologist – guess what? Uterine fibroids were the underlying cause. Sounds scary, what to know about uterine fibroids: how does it affect pregnancy, is it a tumour, & will it lead to cancer?
What is a fibroid?
A fibroid is a tumour made of smooth muscle cells and fibrous connective tissue found in the female reproductive system, including the uterus, uterine wall, or on its surface. It is also known as uterine myomas, leiomyomas, or fibromas.
In some cases, they can also attach to the uterus by a stalk or stem-like structure.
How do I know if I have fibroids?
Uterine fibroids are sometimes detected through a routine check-up or ultrasound.
However, women with fibroids can also suffer from symptoms including:
- Heavy periods
- Pressure, pain or fullness in the lower stomach
- Bloating
- Trouble emptying the bladder
- Severe constipation
- Infertility or miscarriages
Nevertheless, always check with your doctor to get treatment if required.
What treatment can I receive if I have fibroids?
Not all fibroids would warrant treatment. For instance, a fibroid without symptoms that is smaller than 4 cm may not need to be treated. One of the treatments would be to reduce the size of the tumour through oral medications, hormone injection or procedures. In some cases, a surgery might be preferred to improve symptoms caused by fibroids and reverse infertility.
How would fibroids affect my pregnancy?
Most women with fibroids still enjoy a pleasant pregnancy.
Regardless, some women do suffer from complications such as:
- Red degeneration, which causes pain from the growing fibroids during pregnancy
- Caesarian section, which is indicated due to impossible vaginal delivery prevented by fibroids
- Miscarriage
- Bleeding in second or third trimester
- Premature birth
- Premature placenta separation
- Stillbirth
How does a fibroid surgery affect my pregnancy?
The uterus would need time to heal after a fibroid surgery. A study reported that 80 % of women reported satisfactory healing from the surgery after 6 months. Hence, it would be advisable to wait at least 6 months before attempting parenthood.
Another concern of fibroid surgery with pregnancy is uterine rupture. This complication is usually experienced in the early third trimester before labour. Nonetheless, the risk of suffering from uterine rupture is merely 0.75 %. Meanwhile, more than 85 % of women survived a normal vaginal delivery with no uterine rupture.
What are the odds that my fibroid is a cancer?
The chance that a fibroid turning out as a cancer is extremely low. A study that included large number of subjects from around the globe estimated the risk of cancer to range from 0.01 % to 0.05 %. In Singapore, 4 cases of cancerous fibroid were reported out of 4000 fibroid removal surgeries, which makes up to 0.1 % risk of cancer.
Reference:
Your facts on fibroid. Available at: www.fibroid.com.sg
If you would like to make an appointment with an Obstetrician & Gynaecologist:
Find an Obstetrician & Gynaecologist in Malaysia, on GetDoc
Find an Obstetrician & Gynaecologist in Singapore, on GetDoc
by Joanne Lee
Multipotentialite. Loves creating and seeing ideas come alive. View all articles by Joanne Lee.
