Focused Ultrasound as Treatment for Fibroids

I've heard about this therapy before. I even did a little research on it last year before my hyster. It was very new then and still only being tried out by a few groups, but it sounds promising.

The idea is that focused ultrasound is used to basically damage fibroid tumors thermally so that they shrivel up and die, or at least lose volume.

The doctors use an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imager) to guide the directed ultrasound to the right area of tissue in the uterus.

The report that I read late last year said that it's promising but at the moment they were saying the average reduction of fibroid volume is 13.5% ... I'm sorry, but if mine were the size of a grapefruit and an eggplant, that'd mean that they'd be reduced to a large orange and a smaller eggplant. (The largest fibroid was 11 cms, that means that its diameter after 6 months would be reduced to 9.5 cms, which is still kinda big.)

Don't get me wrong, I think this is a great therapy and I'm glad their pursuing it. It's no-invasive (no cutting of the skin at all) and if women pursue treating their fibroids early this might be just the ticket ... after all, if you can reduce or at least stop the growth of a 6 cm fibroid, you can certainly keep from having your uterus removed to get rid of symptoms.

This along with embolization and myomectomy are improving so many women's lives and of course preserving their fertility and ovarian function.

When we respond positively and knowledgably about these stories to our doctors and friends, we're telling the medical establishment that resolving these health issues is important. If all women just accept hysterectomy and its risks and side effects as the status quo ... well, that's they way things will stay.

Link to: MRI guidance of focused ultrasound therapy of uterine fibroids: early results

Posted by Elizabeth M. on September 16, 2005 7:37 PM