A recent survey published in the Journal of Women’s Health indicates that women often delay treatment for uterine fibroids, sometimes for years. According to the survey, 42 percent of black women delay seeking treatment for fibroids more than four years, as do 29 percent of white women.
Uterine fibroids are benign tumours in the uterus that affect approximately three out of every four women over their lifetime. They can have significant negative effects on a woman’s quality of life. Symptoms include unusually heavy menstrual bleeding, excessive pain, cramping, and even fatigue. These symptoms can affect women’s productivity at work, cause them to miss out on recreational activities with friends and family, and even confine them to bed for days each month. Why, then, do so many women wait to seek treatment for their uterine fibroids?
They think the symptoms are normal
I was diagnosed with uterine fibroids earlier this year. I had been suffering from all of the above symptoms, but in talking with other women I’d come to believe that heavier bleeding and more painful cramping were normal as one approached menopause. Having passed age 40, I just assumed my symptoms were typical and that I should tough them out until menopause arrived.
It wasn’t until my doctor gave me a questionnaire that I even mentioned my symptoms, and even then it wasn’t to complain. I just circled the appropriate responses to indicate, for example, how heavy my bleeding was and how severe my cramps were on a scale of one to 10. After looking over my answers, my doctor suggested I come back to be checked for uterine fibroids.
They can’t get a diagnosis
I was lucky. I never had to go from doctor to doctor searching for a diagnosis. As soon as I mentioned my symptoms, my doctor was proactive in getting me checked for uterine fibroids. According to the survey above, 41 percent of women had to see two or more doctors to get a diagnosis, and five percent had to see at least five doctors.
They want to preserve their fertility
The most-common treatments for uterine fibroids are hormone-blocking drugs, birth control pills, or a hysterectomy. All of these options render a woman infertile, either temporarily or permanently. A woman who is trying to conceive would not likely choose any of these options to address her uterine fibroids. Unfortunately, fibroids can sometimes negatively impact fertility or even cause miscarriage, but women with fibroids are usually still able to conceive and carry a child. The desire to build a family often trumps the need to deal with a non-life-threatening but painful condition like uterine fibroids.
They are afraid of surgery
Uterine fibroids are the leading reason hysterectomies are performed in the United States. In fact, that is the option I chose to treat my own fibroids, and I have been happy with the results. After my recovery, my quality of life has been much better without the pain and heavy monthly bleeding the uterine fibroids caused.
But going under the knife is a big decision. It is expensive, it typically requires general anesthesia and at least one overnight stay in the hospital, and even done laparoscopically, the procedure does require several weeks to fully heal. With few proven alternatives to a hysterectomy, many women who want to avoid surgery simply don’t seek treatment at all.
Hope for the future
Various other means of treating uterine fibroids are being studied, including embolisation, laser or radio frequency treatments, freezing, surgical removal of just the fibroids, and focused ultrasound. Recurrence of fibroids is a possibility with all treatments other than hysterectomy. But the results could be promising for women who hope to preserve their uterus.
Talk to your doctor
If you have unusual menstrual symptoms, speak with your doctor. Uterine fibroids are treatable, and the symptoms can be relieved. Also, the symptoms associated with uterine fibroids can have other causes, such as gynecologic cancers, which should be ruled out. Do not ignore unusually heavy bleeding or significant pelvic and abdominal pain, thinking they are just a normal part of aging.
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