Fibroids are noncancerous growths that arise from the muscle cells of the uterus. The tumors may emerge from the outside of the uterus or grow internally beneath the uterine lining. Typically, a woman with fibroids has several. Pain and menstrual irregularities may occur; symptoms depend on the size and location of the tumors. Several fibroid treatment options are available for women with this condition.
Hormonal Therapy
Hormonal therapies may alleviate menstrual symptoms and pain associated with fibroids, notes the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Birth control pills may decrease heavy menstrual bleeding in women with fibroids beneath the uterine lining. Possible fibroid growth is a potential disadvantage of this treatment approach.
An intrauterine device, or IUD, that releases the hormone progestin often produces effects similar to those seen with birth control pills. An IUD is an option only if the fibroids do not encroach on the interior space of the uterus.
Medications known as gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists cause a cessation in menstruation, often leading to fibroid shrinkage. Side effects, including night sweats, vaginal dryness and irritation as well as loss of bone density limit the use of this form of treatment to no longer than six months, notes the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Fibroids typically regrow after discontinuing the gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist therapy.
Surgery
Myomectomy involves the surgical removal of uterine fibroids. The UCSF Women’s Health Center reports that myomectomy is generally the treatment of choice for women who wish to preserve their capacity to bear children. Although myomectomy is an effective form of fibroid treatment, the tumors may recur.
Myomectomy can sometimes be performed laparoscopically, that is, using a few small abdominal incisions and a fiber-optic scope through which the tumors are removed. Tumors growing beneath the uterine lining may be removed with instruments inserted through the vagina. Depending on the location and size of the fibroids, an open abdominal procedure may be necessary.
Women who are not concerned with preserving fertility may opt for a hysterectomy, a surgical removal of the uterus. This treatment is the only certain, permanent cure for uterine fibroids, notes MayoClinic.com.
Myolysis
Myolysis involves the local destruction of fibroids using lasers, freezing or an electrical current, writes Doctors Patricia Evans and Susan Brunsell in a 2007 review article published in "American Family Physician." The incidence of fibroid recurrence after these procedures remains uncertain.
Embolization
Embolization is a procedure to obstruct the blood supply of fibroids, resulting in the destruction of the fibroid growths. An interventional radiologist visualizes each tumor and its blood supply using a fluoroscope, then injects a blocking agent into the feeding blood vessel.
Approximately 90 percent of patients undergoing fibroid embolization experience symptom relief, according to the American College of Radiology and the Radiological Society of North America on the patient information website RadiologyInfo.org.
References
- American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists: Uterine Fibroids
- UCSF Medical Center: Fibroid Treatments
- MayoClinic.com: Uterine Fibroids, Treatments and Drugs
- "American Family Physician"; Uterine Fibroid Tumors: Diagnosis and Treatment; Patricia Evans, M.D., Susan Brunsell, M.D.; May 2007
- RadiologyInfo.org: Uterine Fibroid Embolization
