TAH: Deciding between daVinci hysterectomy and Abdominal procedure

Hi,
I am scheduled for a Davinci hysterectomy taking everything but my ovaries. I have fibroids and have been bleeding heavily during my period for years. I recently had to have a transfusion of two pints due to blood loss over time. I am worried that the Da Vinci carries too high a risk for spreading cancer since they can't check your fibroids beforehand. I just would like to hear from ladies who have had a Davinci hysterectomy and some who have had an abdominal one. I am currently leaning more towards an abdominal but will need to be concrete about my decision soon. Thank You

I had a total abdominal hysterectomy (only kept ovaries) last August and I was fortunate to have a textbook recovery. I had no pain (except gas pain and I drank peppermint tea for that) and I totally followed my doctor's orders which were to rest as needed but to also take walks and to not rush my recovery. I was prescribed Percocet for pain after I was discharged from the hospital but I never had to take it. My doctor advised me to take Motrin for the first couple of days after discharge and that worked fine for me. I took three weeks off from work and I returned to work without any issues. Everyone recovers at their own pace. I hope you choose the best option for you and good luck with your surgery.

Hi...I had robotic 5 1/2 weeks ago and have felt good. Dr. Wasn't sure if he could complete mine because of the size of my uterus and scare tissue from 2 precious c sections and tubes tied. So happy he could complete it without cutting. I was driving within a week. Mind you only picking kids up from school.
Either way you choose will be the right choice for you.
Good luck!d

I had an abdominal hysterectomy for endometrial cancer. Mine was a vertical incision, 7" from navel to pubis. Despite this, I had an easy recovery, with minimal pain and no complications. I had a three day hospital stay and was already off narcotics by the time I was released. At home, I had no trouble taking care of myself and my cats. I went for lots of short walks outdoors and could walk a mile in 15 minutes at two weeks.

I returned to work at a part-time desk job at four weeks, with restrictions on lifting more than 30 lbs. All restrictions were lifted at six weeks. By eight weeks my body felt back to normal except for some minor abdominal swelling in the evenings that lasted another month.

The risk of cancer spread comes from cutting the uterus open in the abdominal cavity . The uterus can still be removed though vagina during laparoscopic and robotic hysterectomies as long as it is not too enlarged. Other times another might incision might be made to remove it. It depends on how large your uterus is and how the doctor plans to remove it.

Please read other this article for a good overview Surgery Options for Fibroids

There are many other great articles in this section to explore. Please take your time making this important decision.

Thank you so much ladies for your insight, it is truly awesome!!!