Help--Keep Ovaries?

My TAH is scheduled for 12/12 due to an enlarged uterus and a huge fibroid tumor that won't quit bleeding which is causing my anemia. My Dr. has left it up to me to decide if I want to keep my ovaries. I am so traumatized about making this decision. If they were healthy I would say keep them....but here is my dilemma: my ultrasound showed that the right ovary is primarily cystic and there is a cyst with septation in the right ovary and a small amount of fluid adjacent to the ovary. There is also a cyst in the left ovary. Does anyone know what all of this means and have any advice to help me make this decision? I'm 46 and probably at least 5+ years from menopause. I need to decide before my pre-op appt. Wednesday--I'm a wreck :confuse:

The choice is ultimately yours. My first thought when I saw your post is that if they are healthy keep them if you can. But, as I read through your post, I see that you have cysts... That is why my doc didn't recommend I keep mine. I was pretty upset about losing mine. So upset, I put off my surgery for 2 1/2 years! I just dealt with the pain for a couple more years to try to keep my ovaries as long as I could. But, I finally gave in just under 3 weeks ago. I had my ovaries out at the age of 34 and 10 months due to the cysts
I know I'm probably no help, but you just need to weigh the pros and cons and if you have to, spend a lot of time discussing this with your doctor before you make a rush decision.

I am 45. I had a TAH three weeks ago. I too had the choice of keeping or removing my ovaries. According to a blood test, I have not started perimenopause yet. I have never had anything wrong with my ovaries that I know of - no cysts, etc. I struggled with this decision even into the OR the morning of the surgery. (I too was a "wreck" with this decision.) I was told there was data that supported keeping and removing them at my age, but that there was more data that supported removing them. In the end, I decided to keep mine because there was nothing I knew of wrong with them, I had not started perimenopause, and I was afraid of having trouble with HRT. I told my doctor to remove them both during the surgery if she saw anything at all wrong with either one. However, most days I wish that I had her remove them regardless of what they looked like. I have been reading more about ovarian cancer since my surgery, and I think I would feel more comfortable if they were removed. I suggest you read up on both HRT and ovarian cancer. This website has some useful information. It may help you make your decision. My doctor was helpful too, but for some reason I just could not listen to her. I was an emotional mess the weeks before my surgery. I was so worried about the surgery (which was silly as I have also had two c-sections), that I just couldn't think straight at all. I am an engineer, and normally a logical person, but the thought of a hysterectomy just knocked me for a loop. By the way, the worst part of the surgery for me was preparing for it. Once it was over, I knew I was recovering. The first week after surgery wasn't all that fun, but it has gotten better very quickly. I feel really good now. This website was very helpful. I wish I had found it before my surgery.

I also had cysts on my ovaries. However, my Dr. and I made the decision to remove the ovaries to mitigate the pain associated with bursting cysts and due to a family history of cancer. Although the cancer history is not cervical, ovarian, etc. (Sister - breast cancer survivor for 1 year, Father - died from large cell cancer at age 46, Paternal Grandmother - died from oat cell cancer at age 55).

My Dr. felt it best to remove the ovaries and tubes to eliminate the chance of cancer "hiding" there in the future. I did not have a problem with it, as I have been having mentapausal symptons for 12 years (since age 30) and thought that the full blown mentapause can't be much worse than what I had already been going through.

Good luck with your decision!

I had the same choice....my doc said that if I were 3 years younger then keep them, 3 years older then remove them- I am 48.

I told her that when she is in there and they look good then to leave them, if there was a problem to take them. I knew there was a cyst, but that doesn't always mean it is a "bad cyst" since we get one every time we ovulate and she could tell once she actaully looked at it. I had complete faith in her judgement, (which sort of put the decision in her hands). My mother also had cervical cancer which she did not survive. She left them in and all my pathology reports came back fine - no cancer.

I did go through a bit of the what if down the road - but if there is a problem I'll deal with it if and when it happens. I figured if I can make my own hormones a few more years that was better than buying them

Hello my fellow Missouri sister,

I'm 43 (till next Fri. anyway) and had a TAH on Nov. 13th. I too had the option of keeping or losing my ovaries. Back in Aug. when I was told I needed a hyst, my first reaction was to take it all; a one-stop-shop approach. I did not want to go back in for another surgery. However, the more I researched about ovaries and hyst, and the concerns I had about synthetic HRT, etc., I decided to lose one and keep one. I too had cysts on both ovaries but my left one was the most painful during ovulation. My doc and I discussed all angles of this decision and he informed me I had approx. 8 yrs left of good ovary function; he also clarified things for me concerning the "bad press" HRT has been given. What I ended up deciding and instructing my doc to do was, if when he opened me up and found that both ovaries were bad, then obviously take them both. Otherwise, since I had so much left-sided pain, check my left ovary more closely and remove that one and leave my right. As it turned out, my doc said that I had a large vericose vein in my left fallopian tube which more than likely caused that pain I was experiencing, so he removed that one.

I am very happy with my decision. Another thing that made me re-think having both ovaries removed was that if I did end up having to have an ovary removed at a later date, the surgery for that is less invasive than the TAH I had. I read the ovary could be removed lapriscopically as outpatient surgery. So, I figure in having only one ovary, it now reduces my chances by 50% in getting ovarian cancer and I still have one ovary producing the hormones I need...naturally.

I wish you the best with your decision and surgery. As you keep hearing though, the decision on whether to keep your ovaries or not is definitely a personal one and depends on family medical history, etc.


~Pam

I understand what everyone else has said.... But when it all comes down to it.. God is the only one in control of what's going to happen. If they have to be removed, he'll handle how to deal with it afterwards. I, unfortunately, had no choice. Although, I had not planned on having them removed, DR said it was a different story once he saw what they looked like. Here is an idea on finding some peace about this decision: Do your research, and understand that most of what you will read/hear is the negative side. Once you know the goods and bads of both, Give it up to someone who controls it. Its not you, nor I, nor the Dr's....

I wish you luck, and my only advice would be to relax, and try to put things into perspective and be prepared for either outcome. It does/has/will continue to work out.

I wanted to keep mine also, they told me I had up until the morning of surgery to change my mind. They said just let the dr know if you decide to keep them before surgery.

(They took them , thought the risk of cancer was greater than the need for estrogen)

I also have been struggling with this choice and I fall into that age group that could go either way at 47. I have a gigantic cyst inside my right ovary, but it's the first one I've ever had, so I don't have a history of them. Since I don't have a family history of cancer, but I do have a family history of heart disease at a young age, I've decided to have the doc take a look at the left ovary and if it's healthy, leave it. I may be able to get a few more years of natural hormones from it. If it has to come out at a later date, it can be done fairly easily without major abdominal surgery again. If the doc looks at it and it has problems, then I will live with the fact that it had to come out, but at least I will be giving it a chance.

My regular doc says since my surgeon is an oncologist, his first concern is always going to be with what could possible cause cancer down the road, while she treats the whole body, so she is weighing the risks of cancer versus the risks of heart disease and overall health. She voted to try to keep the ovary if possible and I have decided that's what I want, too.

It's a personal choice that has to be made based on family health history and your own personal history of problems. It's a really hard choice and one I agonized over for weeks, but I finally feel good about my decision. I hope you can reach a decision you feel comfortable with, too. Good luck!

Judy

This is a tough decision. Without ovaries you will need hormone replacement therapy. It can be extremely difficult to feel the same again, or you may feel fine.
I am not just talking estrogen here.
Your doctor will do whatever you ask. I went in knowing about my cysts and endo. I wanted to keep mine anyway.
During surgery the doc wanted to take both because they were so bad, but my husband remained firm, insisting that he save one. Well my doc did save one and a tube. It was a grueling surgery I hear!
Read as much as you can about hormones. I recommend John Lee. Good Luck.