More than half the women diagnosed with fibroids in their wombs are presented with the option of a hysterectomy, a sterilizing operation, rather than less invasive procedures, said a survey commissioned by the Society of Interventional Radiology. Uterine fibroids, defined as benign growths that often appear during years of pregnancy and birth, are not considered risk factors for cancer. Hysterectomies are often recommended for cancer of the cervix, ovaries and fallopian tubes.
When a woman undergoes fibroid symptoms — including bleeding between periods, heavy bleeding during periods or cramping during periods — she will often turn to her obstetrician-gynecologist, OBGYN, for treatment. “This study provides evidence that alternatives to hysterectomy are underutilized in women undergoing hysterectomy for AUB (abnormal uterine bleeding). The rate of unsupported pathology when hysterectomies were done for these indications was 18%,” said researchers who analyzed pathology results at 52 hospitals in 2013.
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