Sometimes hysterectomy is unavoidable

Submitted by kitty on April 3, 2010 - 12:57pm
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I suffered from pelvic prolapse for a few years but was strongly against hysterectomy as a solution - although that was the only thing that all my doctors recommended. I even cancelled one date for surgery - would rather live with the prolapse!

Last fall I experienced some post-menopausal bleeding and biopsy indicated uterine cancer. Again I was scheduled for hysterectomy, and this time I knew I would be going through with the surgery. And I was terrified.

I am now more than eight weeks post op and feeling great. The cancer was caught early and hopefully there will be no recurrence. The surgery that so terrified me was not so bad. I am a 64-year-old grandmother, so it wasn't such a great physical or hormonal loss as would be the case with a younger person. I handled the surgery well, and my recuperation was much faster than I expected.

I was most concerned about being set back physically and yet I have now returned to most of the activities I was doing pre surgery. I do not feel any less of a woman. Actually, I feel a little more feminine without the concern and anxiety of the physical obstruction that the prolapse was causing me. It is a huge relief not to feel that "bulge" when I walk or sit down.

This website has been a good source of information and inspiration to me; however, I want to share these few positive thoughts about hysterectomy for those who may find it necessary.

aza

April 8, 2010 - 6:46pm

Hi Kitty,
What a journey you have been on! SO glad to hear that you have found some relief and have not so far experienced ill effects of the surgery. I found your old post where you mentioned that you felt estrogen supplementation may have been responsible for the cancer. Have you managed to reconcile the iatrogenic cause of your cancer? That road of modern-medicine caused illness is a hard road to travel, indeed. I agree with you that sometimes hysterectomy is unavoidable, just as sometimes amputation, brain surgery, appendectomy, etc are unavoidable and are the best course of action. What I have grave concerns about is the rate of things like hysterectomy and c-sections on women at this crucial point in time in history. There is no way in any version of reality that the current rate of both is acceptable, necessary, nor humane. Are there situations like yours when this is warranted? Yes. I just wish we had a realistic understanding of what this rate might be. I know that while the nationwide c-section rate is 33%, my personal stats average .01%. Clearly a bit of a discrepancy that speaks volumes! Judging by the words women on this forum, the vast majority had pelvic surgeries that were, in their opinion, most definitely unwarranted. I am glad that you do not fall into this category! Best wishes for continued recovery and healing!

kitty

April 9, 2010 - 2:54pm

Hi Aza,
Premarin estrogen cream is definitely linked to uterine cancer. My doctor told me it didn't cause the cancer but may have accelerated it. I don't think I took enough of it for it to have created the tumor. I did notice that Premarin was documented in my surgery report, which I found interesting. Otherwise, I do not have any of the five or six risk factors associated with this disease. I'm glad it was caught early.
As far as the rate of hysterectomy surgeries, I couldn't agree with you more. It is absolutely appalling, and was the main reason I didn't have the surgery in the first place. I do not trust the reasons why doctors are so quick to perform this operation. In my case it became truly unavoidable, and I'm grateful there were no complications or problems with recovery.