Question: Ovarian Cyst. Is the pain consistent? Or does it go away?

[curious308]

Hi all:

I'm 24 year old and a week before my period, I had some lower right abdomen pain and went to the doctor. The nurse practitioner saw me and did a pelvic exam. She felt the right ovary to be "palpable," so she sent me off to get a Ultrasound/Vaginal ultra sound. The results were:

Uterine size: 8.9 x 4.1 x 3.6 cm with unremarkable appearance. Endometrial thickness is 13.1 mm
Ovaries: Right ovary contains a 3.8 x 4.4cm complex mass with cystic and solid components. Diagnostic considerations include complex cyst, endometrioma, or less likely ovarian neoplasm. Left ovary is normal.
Cul-De-Sac: Negative
Other: Negative


The doctors said that since my pregnancy test was negative, he ruled out ectopic prenancy. Hmm. Since then... my period came and the pain went away. I'm thinking if this is just a normal cycle. I think I've had similar pain in the past. Just before my period. I'm suppose to have a repeat ultrasound in 1-2 months. (I kinda want one after my period ends to see if the size went down!)

SO.. question for you all: For those that has ovarian type pain... is it consistent?  Also.. if I take out my ovary, does that mean the chance of getting pregnant is half of what it was before? @_@

[lucky1977]

I wanted to reply b/c I could really related to your question.  I am 29 years old (with no cancer in my family at all), and I had fluid-filled cysts on my L ovary for a few years.  The pain got worse, and I was recently diagnosed with a solid mass/neoplasm on the same ovary.  The pain for me was not constant...it was definitely worse in the middle of the month, and just before my period.  It was also most noticeable during intercourse, and as the mass got bigger, I started noticing it when I went jogging, etc.  As the mass got bigger, the pain became more constant.  

I have since had the tumour removed, and unfortunately it turned out to be a borderline ovarian tumour...however, luckily it seems to be at an early stage, so they removed only the L ovary.  My husband and I want to have a baby....so they told me to have a family ASAP and then have a full hysterectomy.  The gyno explained that the other ovary will take over and there should not be a major effect on my fertility - however, other sites indicate that it can decrease after this type of condition.  

I certainly do not want to scare you....but I would encourage you to follow-up with your doctor and see a gyno for sure.  My ultrasounds also showed a solid/cystic mass, but it was the MRI that showed that it was actually a solid tumour with malignant potential.  The CA-125 blood work is not very reliable, unless one has very advanced ovarian cancer.  

Take care, and best of luck.

[alanpvegas]

OK, I asked my mom on this one...she said her pain was consistant (but at the time thought it was due to an injury she had at the same location).  

Have the performed a CT-Scan, MRI, etc. to determine further?  CA-125 test?  Ultrasound is fine as a component, but by itself won't help determine much.  Multiple types of tests help get a clearer picture of what is going on.

I think the answer to your other question is women have become pregnant with just one ovary...but if we're talking cancer here, they will want to remove the other one.  You can say no, and they'll be ok with that considering you are at least Stage 1 (no metastasis).  But you may be walking a tightrope and need constant monitoring to catch a new outbreak.

Alan

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Ovarian Cancer Research Website (In BETA Testing)
http://cancer.alanpeto.com/