Up to 8 in 10 women develop uterine fibroids during their lifetime. Experienced OB/GYNs Christina Nguyen, MD, and Marvin Najjar, MD, are fibroid specialists offering the latest fibroids treatments at WHASN West Valley. Treatments like MyoSure® and TruClear™ can remove fibroids in the Las Vegas, Nevada, office, so you don’t have to spend any time in the hospital. Call the office or book your appointment online now.
Fibroids are noncancerous growths within or on the uterus. They can range from the size of a pea to a grapefruit or even larger. The largest fibroids can even fill the whole abdominal cavity.
Many women have one or more fibroids at some point. In most cases, the fibroids go away within a few menstrual cycles. But fibroids can also remain in place, maintain a steady size, or grow larger over time.
Fibroids can cause symptoms including:
Some women with fibroids have severe symptoms that disrupt their daily life while others don’t even know their fibroids exist.
The cause of fibroids isn’t certain, but female hormones appear to play a role. Hormone levels fluctuate over time, with the most notable change occurring during menopause, when they drop by about 50%.
Many women in menopause experience fibroid shrinkage, while some women experience rapid fibroid growth during pregnancy due to estrogen spikes during that time.
Fibroid treatment depends on your symptoms. You may not require treatment if you have no ill effects from fibroids. But, if you have disruptive symptoms, the WHASN West Valley team prescribes a tailored treatment approach.
Some women take medications to control the symptoms rather than the fibroids themselves. For example, birth control pills can relieve abnormal uterine bleeding and pelvic pain but could cause fibroid growth.
Other options, like gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists, stop your menstrual cycle and can help shrink your fibroids. But, GnRH agonists can have major side effects, and the fibroids can grow back when you stop taking them. GnRH antagonists with hormonal add-back therapy can control heavy bleeding with fewer side effects.
Other treatment options include progestin-releasing intrauterine devices (IUDs) like Mirena® and tranexamic acid.
WHASN West Valley also offers office-based fibroid removal using the MyoSure® and TruClear™ systems. These innovative systems can safely remove your fibroids and relieve your symptoms without major surgery.
Call WHASN West Valley or book an appointment using online scheduling for fibroid help today.