Aa
Sad and confused. Need advice please??
I am 26 and was considering having a baby soon. I went in for my annual exam in Jan and the doc told me she felt a fullness on the right side of my pelvis. I had a transvaganial ultrasound less than 2 months later which showed a cyst around 5 cm on my left ovary and a small area on the right that looks like a dermoid or possible endometrosis. A CA125 was done which was a 4 and the doc said that was normal but that it is not a very reliable test for younger women. The plan at the time was to wait for 2 cycles than redo the ultrasound. The cyst grew to 7 cm after 2 cycles. I met with the doc today to discuss surgery. She does not feel confident removing it laparoscopically and recommends a laparotomy. She suggested a doc who would be willing to try laparoscopy. I cannot decide if I should get a 2nd opinion from the other doc. The laparotomy recovery time is a lot longer than laparoscopy but laparoscopy leaves numerous scars and may lead to a laparotomy if the tumor cannot be removed through the smaller incisions. Taking my ovary in the event cancer is found has been mentioned. My husband and I have not had any children yet and this is all very scary for me. Sorry if I'm rambling but I just wanted to be in the company of women who can relate. Also, do you ladies know which of the procedures is more costly? Any advice, encouragement, words of wisdom, any is appreciated. Thanks in advance for taking the time to read this!
I have gotten ovarian cysts since highschool...It seems getting a second opinion is always wise. I had an grapefruit sized cyst, my dr found during pelvic exam, she had me do an u/s and ct. The ct showed inflamed lymph nodes, the u/s showed the cyst shrinking compared to ct results. I saw an obgyn and he said, it was no cause for concern and surgery could do more damage then good, since mine was resolving itself. As for the lymph nodes he said it could be inflamation from the cyst draining, kinda like trama to the area. over the years i have had multiple cysts, all have resolved themselves. I am currently 6 weeks preg, so even with reoccurant cyst there is still hope! I would suggest getting another opinion and having a ct done to fully determine the cysts structure. Good luck to you!!
I was scared too. I am fine today and I had a laportomy because I was in such bad shape that they couldn't have gotten it out with a laproscopy surgery. Just like Heffmeister said many women had children with just one ovary.
If there is any doubt that the mass/cyst is cancerous you really should be going down the laparotomy route- yes having a keyhole incision looks neater and shorter recovery but you risk the thing rpturing and it there are cancer cells they could spread througout your pelvis. I had a football sized ovarian tumor removed in apri, I'm 32 years old. My surgeon went in with a laprascopically to look around and realised it was to much to deal with and did a vertical 4" incision- yes it's was very sore for a few weeks but my tumor was borderline malignant and they were able to check me all over internally and stage me at the same time which was good. It's also not a good idea to biopsy large cysts for the same reason. Get a onocolgy gyny dr to do the surgery if possible.
Plenty of women conceive fine with just one ovary btw.
Plenty of women conceive fine with just one ovary btw.
I had an emergency laparatomy for an ovarian tumor. the laparascopic does leave multiple scars, but they are smaller and much less noticeable than the open surgery. plus laparascopic means shorter recovery time. i would get a 2nd opinion, maybe even see a gyn oncologist as well. good luck
I know it's scary but I had a laparotomy, and I am still here. It was almost a year ago and if I wear the wrong kind of pants it still hurts. If they can't get it with the small one, like you said you will wind up with the laparotomy. If you need one anything I am here to discuss this with you in further detail.
Hi medicmommy! My doc said the fullness she felt on the right may have been the left ovary being pushed over by the cyst. She mentioned that I should consider a CT if I planned on prolonging the surgery to make sure my lymph nodes were okay. I really didn't give that part much thought because I want to get this taken care of as soon as possible. I have an appointment with another doc on Tuesday to discuss laparoscopy. I'm happy to hear that your cyst went away and I really wish mine would do the same. Thanks so much for the advice!!
Hello...
I know you are worried sick about now...I went through something similar except my surgeon scared the *@#&@ out of me! My CA-125 was 26 and I had a large ovarian cyst as well...So, here's the thing...Most ovarian cysts rupture and fire off their egg and/or reabsorb. There are always cysts being made that enclose the eggs while they reach maturity. The CA-125 test is cr@p for testing ovarian cancer because it is influenced by hormone levels...And if you are within a week or so of your cycle, the level rises.
I'm curious about the "fullness" your Dr felt. Small spots of endometriosis and even ovarian tumors are usually found during surgery or a CAT scan and, unless they are large, they usually can't be felt. But swollen lymph nodes can signal trouble....
Personally, I would go to someone else who IS comfortable with a laparoscopy. I had one when my gallbladder was removed (and when the surgeon found the ovarian cyst!)
and my recovery time was about 10 days (my job involved heavy lifting.) I went home the same day as the surgery, and although sore, my pain was easily controlled. My gallbladder was much bigger than a regular ovary, and they were able to take it out with a Laparoscopy surgery. The infection risk and scarring is much less than the open method and, if they find something really bad -the surgery can be stepped up to the laparotomy. The cool part is, they can look around to check for signs of cancer or endometrial scarring that creates some really awful pain, -and they can fix it! IF (big if) this turns out to be cancer and you have to go through chemo or radiation, have some eggs harvested from the healthy ovary before the treatment and put them on ice. This way, you can still have children if the treatment makes you unable to make eggs anymore...I hope this helps. The odds are in your favor for it NOT to be cancer. If it helps, the women I've seen with ovarian cancer had CA-125 tests in the thousands...(((((HUGZ))))))) ~MM
P.S If I didn't say, -my "cyst alert" was a false alarm. Three months later, it was gone...That's been 3 years ago...I'll keep you in my prayers...
I know you are worried sick about now...I went through something similar except my surgeon scared the *@#&@ out of me! My CA-125 was 26 and I had a large ovarian cyst as well...So, here's the thing...Most ovarian cysts rupture and fire off their egg and/or reabsorb. There are always cysts being made that enclose the eggs while they reach maturity. The CA-125 test is cr@p for testing ovarian cancer because it is influenced by hormone levels...And if you are within a week or so of your cycle, the level rises.
I'm curious about the "fullness" your Dr felt. Small spots of endometriosis and even ovarian tumors are usually found during surgery or a CAT scan and, unless they are large, they usually can't be felt. But swollen lymph nodes can signal trouble....
Personally, I would go to someone else who IS comfortable with a laparoscopy. I had one when my gallbladder was removed (and when the surgeon found the ovarian cyst!)
and my recovery time was about 10 days (my job involved heavy lifting.) I went home the same day as the surgery, and although sore, my pain was easily controlled. My gallbladder was much bigger than a regular ovary, and they were able to take it out with a Laparoscopy surgery. The infection risk and scarring is much less than the open method and, if they find something really bad -the surgery can be stepped up to the laparotomy. The cool part is, they can look around to check for signs of cancer or endometrial scarring that creates some really awful pain, -and they can fix it! IF (big if) this turns out to be cancer and you have to go through chemo or radiation, have some eggs harvested from the healthy ovary before the treatment and put them on ice. This way, you can still have children if the treatment makes you unable to make eggs anymore...I hope this helps. The odds are in your favor for it NOT to be cancer. If it helps, the women I've seen with ovarian cancer had CA-125 tests in the thousands...(((((HUGZ))))))) ~MM
P.S If I didn't say, -my "cyst alert" was a false alarm. Three months later, it was gone...That's been 3 years ago...I'll keep you in my prayers...
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