Fibroids

Fibroids come in all different shapes and sizes. Most small fibroids don’t cause any symptoms and won’t need treatment.

But larger fibroids can bring on many uncomfortable symptoms, such as:

• very heavy or painful bleeding during your period

• bleeding between your periods

• bloating, or a feeling of fullness in your lower tummy

• needing to pee more often

• pain during sex

• lower back pain

• constipation, or a feeling of pressure on your rectum

• long-term vaginal discharge

• feeling like you can’t fully empty your bladder

Fibroids can be split into 4 main categories, depending on where they’re found. These include:

• submucosal fibroids – fibroids that grow under the lining of your uterus. They often cause heavy periods, and may lead to miscarriage or difficulty getting pregnant

• intramural fibroids – the most common type of fibroid that are deep in the muscular wall of the womb and tend to cause heavy bleeding or pressure symptoms

• subserosal and serosal fibroids – fibroids that grow under the lining of the outer surface of your uterus. They can grow quite large, and are most likely to cause pressure symptoms

• pedunculated fibroids – fibroids that are attached to the surface of the womb by a stalk and can cause pain (if they twist on their stalk) and/or pressure symptoms. These are less common

Why fibroids develop in some women but not others isn’t fully understood, but it’s thought that the hormones oestrogen and progesterone may play a role. 

Most fibroids happen in people of reproductive age and tend to grow when hormone levels are higher (like during pregnancy) and shrink when hormone levels are low, like during the transition to menopause.

Any woman of reproductive age can develop fibroids, but you may be more at risk if you:

• are obese or have a high body mass index (BMI)

• have a family history of fibroids

• drink a lot of alcohol – especially beer

• eat a lot of red meat and not enough green vegetables

• have African-Caribbean heritage – black women are more likely to have fibroids than people of other racial groups. They may also have larger fibroids and worse symptoms

• haven’t had children

• started your period at a young age – before the age of 10

• went through menopause at a late age

Fibroids can be diagnosed by a specialist during an ultrasound scan. In some cases, an MRI scan will be needed to give more information about the number, location, and size of the fibroids, to help work out the best treatment.

It’s not possible to completely avoid fibroids, but you may be able to reduce your risk by: 

• maintaining a healthy weight

• getting regular pelvic exams

• eating a balanced diet

Most fibroids won’t cause any serious problems. But sometimes they can lead to complications, such as:

• pain that stops you from going about life as normal

• swelling of your tummy or pelvic area

• very heavy bleeding

• anaemia, due to heavy blood loss

• infertility, but this is rare

Treatment options can vary depending on the size, number, and location of the fibroids, as well as your symptoms.

Small fibroids can often be monitored occasionally by ultrasound or pelvic exam.

If your fibroids are causing heavy periods or other symptoms, treatment options may include:

• the contraceptive pill – it can help with heavy bleeding between and during your period

• tranexamic acid – a medicine to reduce heavy bleeding

• iron supplements – if heavy blood loss has caused anaemia

• gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists – medicines used to shrink fibroids temporarily. They’re often used before surgery

• surgery – performed if your fibroids are very large, other treatments haven’t helped, or they’re causing severe symptoms.

At Welbeck, our women’s health specialists are experts in their field and are dedicated to providing world-class care to every patient.

With access to colleagues across other specialties, our consultants are also able to refer within the Welbeck ecosystem if required to ensure you receive the treatment you need as quickly as possible, all under one roof.  

All appointments, testing, treatment, and follow-up appointments take place within our state-of-the-art facilities, enabling us to deliver accurate diagnostics and advanced treatments.

Your health is important to us, so we strive to offer same-day appointments whenever possible.

Our consultants are recognised by the major health insurance companies. If you have private health insurance, your treatment at Welbeck can begin once you have obtained authorisation. We also provide care to self-paying patients. Learn more about the different payment options at Welbeck.

Get in touch today to book an appointment.