I guarantee that at least 25% of the women that post on this thread have uterine fibroids. I also guarantee that the men who post here are related to or know a woman with uterine fibroids. Its just that common, and if you are in that 25%, you may be in the 50% that endure the worst of the problems these fibroids can cause.
Yep….that’s the look. That picture approrpiately displays my sentiment before I underwent the surgery to help alleviate the misery. Little did I know how common it was until that time. Then, all of a sudden I found that half my female cousins and college friends were in the same boat. In fact, my one coworker that knew exactly why I would be out for a month, discovered 3 other coworkers who would be out around the same time, for the same reason. All African-american women. What gives? First, what is a uterine fibroid?
A uterine fibroid is a tumorthat grows in the wall of the uterus (or womb). Fibroids are not cancer. Fibroids can grow as a single tumor, or there can be many of them in the uterus. They can be as small as an apple seed or as big as a grapefruit. In unusual cases they can become very large. Most fibroids cause no symptoms. But women who do have symptoms often find fibroids hard to live with. These symptoms can include:
- Heavy bleeding (which can be heavy enough to cause anemia) or painful periods
- Feeling of fullness in the lower stomach area
- Enlargement of the lower abdomen
- Passing urine often
- Pain during sex
- Lower back pain
- Complications during pregnancy and labor
- Reproductive problems, such as infertility, which is very rare
See your doctor if you have symptoms. Women who have or have had fibroids should see their doctor for regular checkups. Fibroids are common among women of childbearing age. African-American women are three times more likely to get fibroids than other women. In African-American women, fibroids also seem to occur at a younger age, grow more quickly, and are more likely to cause symptoms. Overweight and obese women also are at higher risk of fibroids. No one knows for sure what causes fibroids or what makes them grow or shrink. For some women, fibroids stop growing or shrink after menopause. Many treatment options exist to help women who are bothered by fibroid symptoms.
Okay, so we don’t know what causes them…but we know they are costing us a lot: Uterine fibroids cost the U.S. billions: study
(Reuters Health) – Uterine fibroids cost the U.S. billions each year in lost work days, pregnancy problems and treatments, a new study finds. Uterine fibroids are common, non-cancerous growths that form from muscle cells and other tissue in the wall of the uterus. In the U.S., it’s estimated that up to 70 percent of white women develop fibroids at some point by age 50; among African-American women, that number is closer to 80 percent.
Often, fibroids cause no symptoms. But at least one-quarter of U.S. women have fibroid symptoms like heavy menstrual periods, bleeding between periods and abdominal or lower back pain.
And in some cases, fibroids can make it hard for a woman to get pregnant, or increase her risk of pregnancy complications like miscarriage and preterm birth. Since fibroids are so common, “it’s very important to understand the societal costs,” said researcher Dr. James H. Segars of the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Bethesda, Maryland.
Based on his team’s estimates, uterine fibroids cost the U.S. anywhere from $6 billion to $34 billion each year. That’s with both treatment costs and “indirect” costs, like lost work days, taken into account. In fact, Segars said, the cost of lost work — days off due to fibroid symptoms or to receive treatment — turned out to be the biggest expense. The researchers put that cost at anywhere from $1.5 billion to $17 billion annually. Those cost ranges are very wide, Segars acknowledged. But, he said, they are estimates based on a collection of past studies that varied in how they collected data.
Okay, so its a prevalent condition, costing us a lot of money…how can this be prevented and/or treated to prevent futher misery and money?
There’s no single best approach to uterine fibroid treatment. Many treatment options exist. From watchful waiting to medications such as certain birth control pills, to simple surgery, or in extreme cases, a hysterectomy. Read more here at Treatment and Drugs.
*Sigh*……………….so no easy answers. I can say from experience that exercising and drinking cranberry juice does indeed cut down on the cramping and bloating (well it did for me) and probably was the reason my situation wasn’t worse than what it could have been. I opted for the UFE (uterine fibroid embolization) and given a choice, would do it again. The best thing to do if you suspect you have fibroids, is to make sure you get them checked out by your doctor…quickly! Do not wait!
