The conversation [around treatment] should be complex and inclusive of each individual’s journey, she says.
It shouldn’t be a template.
Finally, you may have to take insurance coverage into consideration.
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To help inform the conversation with your doctor, heres an overview of uterine fibroids treatment options.
If youre not having any symptoms, your doctor may simply recommend monitoring your fibroids.
You might not notice symptoms until you really, really do.
The earlier you intervene with fibroids, the better it is for the patient, Dr. Javaid says.
Since estrogen fuels fibroid growth, drugs targeting estrogen production can treat fibroids.
The downside to this hormonal rebalancing is that they basically put a woman into menopause, says Dr. Eilber.
Birth control
Another nonsurgical option to treat fibroids-related bleeding is birth control.
Myomectomy
Another treatment option is to completely remove the fibroids with a procedure called a myomectomy.
An even less invasive option is available depending on the location of the fibroids.
A hysteroscopic myomectomy can be used as a treatment for submucosal fibroids found within the uterine cavity.
But that conversation is really about where the patient is in their journey.
Are they finished with childbearing?
Have they tried other sources of medical management that didn’t work?
Or are they just at a point where they are okay with doing a definitive throw in of treatment?
Its important to discuss all the options thoroughly with a doctor you trust.
Unfortunately, lots of women have lost their uteruses unnecessarily.
Macaela MacKenzieis a writer and editor specializing in wellness.
Shes the author ofMoney, Power, Respect: How Women in Sports Are Shaping the Future of Feminism.
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