While many fibroid tumors go away on their own and do not require surgery, many fibroid tumors do require surgery.  This may be because of the fibroid tumor’s location, size, or the impact the fibroid tumor is having on the patient’s health.  In the past, women with fibroid tumors only had one or two alternatives, but now there are various surgical treatments for fibroid tumors.

Years ago, one of the only surgical treatments for fibroid tumors was a hysterectomy.  This is a procedure that removes the uterus.  This is a very effective treatment because fibroid tumors only grow attached to the uterus.  However, this treatment is not always well-received because many of the women who have fibroid tumors may still be interested in having children.  For this reason, a hysterectomy is no longer the only treatment option.  It is now only performed on women who no longer wish to have children or who have chronic fibroid tumors. 

A myomectomy is a surgical procedure that removes the fibroid tumors without removing the uterus.  While any surgery in the uterine area may lead to infertility, the chances of this occurring as a result of this surgery are not great.  Many women who still desire to have children choose this option when they are instructed that their fibroid tumors will require surgery.

The myomectomy is less invasive than the hysterectomy.  In this procedure, the doctor tries to remove as many tumors as possible by making as few cuts as possible.  In fact, the surgeon may be able to remove the fibroid tumors by going through the vagina, entirely avoiding cutting a woman open.  This is not always the case.  After the doctor cuts the fibroid tumors from the uterus, the doctor will close the spaces in the uterine lining where the fibroid tumors were in order to prevent blood from collecting in these areas.

Patients tend to bleed quite a bit when undergoing this procedure.  Because of this, doctors take special precautions when performing this surgery.  It is not uncommon for patients to require additional blood during this procedure.  This surgery also tends to be a very long procedure because the surgeon may have to remove several fibroid tumors, requiring several incisions.

It is also common that a woman may require several myomectomy procedures.  This is because fibroid tumors often recur if the uterus is not removed.  The more often a patient has a myomectomy procedure, the more likely it is that the patient will develop scar tissue.  This scarring can cause the uterus to stick together or cause a bowel obstruction.  If a patient has several myomectomy surgeries, they may eventually need to have a hysterectomy.

Your doctor can best advise you about your surgical options.  You may even want to seek a second opinion in order to make the best choice regarding your health.