Anyone found an alternative to hysterectomy for Adenomyosis

I've had horribly painful and heavy periods for several years. I don't have any children and I'll be 39 in November. I finally got off my you know what and got thoroughly checked out. I've had two ultrasounds and an MRI. I have ovarian cysts, fibroids, endometriosis, adenomyosis and a deformed uterus.

I tried birth control pills for six months and they didn't help. I'm on Lupron right now and I'm no longer a very pleasant person. I have no problem philosophically, morally or religiously with getting a hysterectomy. However, I don't want to make this decision lightly. My ob/gyn says I am not a candidate for a vaginal hysterectomy (because the adenomyosis is so severe) and is sending me to a gynecological oncologist for a consult on the full blown TAH.

Anyone else out there with a similar situation? What did you do? What are you contemplating?

Before my Hyst my Dr was sure I had Adeno. Which my pathology showed....as far as my knowledge, the only known cure is a Hyst I'm sure other Sisters will be along shortly who are facing similar situations. Good Luck and please keep us posted....

If the adenomyosis is localized, it may be possible to remove just the affected area. This is not usually the case, though. However, you may be able to have a laproscopic supracervical hyst (LSH) even though you can't have a vaginal hyst. Good luck to you.

Hi there-
I am in the same boat as you- and they too told me that I have to have a hyst if I want the pain and the excessive bleeding to stop.
I called and got my date today- October 23rd!

When I did my research I saw that some people had part of their uterus removed- but most of them had to have the whole thing removed a few years later.


I hope this helps.

:Hug:
Lisa

I had total laparoscopic hysterectomy. I had intractable menstrual pain and extremely thorough removal of endometriosis didn't resolve it. I also had painful orgasm. Birth control pills controlled my pain but I couldn't tolerate the side effects. I had none of the other symptoms of adenomyosis--no "boggy" uterus, only moderately heavy bleeding--so hysterectomy was a crap shoot for me.

And I won. My surgery went well, my recovery was pretty smooth (except for the usual tiredness that came and went for many weeks to come), and I can now plan my life without checking the calendar to see if I am scheduled to be in pain. My pathology report did show adenomyosis.

This is major surgery and there can be complications, so don't take it lightly. But for me it was well worth it. My life has changed so much for the better.

Some surgeons will do hysterectomy laparoscopically, and some won't. It can take longer, or they may have to use special, expensive, disposable equipment to do it, and most are simply not trained in it. If you're interested in this option, you'll have to ask for a referral to a doctor who does it. To me, you pick the best surgeon you can find, and if you like him or her, use the procedure he (or she) recommends. In the long run, there's no big difference in your result--just in the early stages of recovery.

Good luck with your decision!