Upcoming hysterectomy: questions re 20 week uterus on Lupron

Hi ladies. I'm hoping someone can help with my ridiculous amount of Qs! I will be having surgery in the Aug or Sept - they're taking everything but ovaries. I have a lot of fibroids, they gave up measuring after the fifth one. My dr gave me a 3 month shot of Lupron to shrink my fibroids with the goal of using the da vinci. I just had my second MRI and the Lupron is working! He said that my uterus went from 2200 CCs (?) to 1700.

He wants it a bit smaller so gave me another shot of Lupron. It feels like most people only had up to 3 months of Lupron. Is 6 mos too long or harmful? If it is and since I already got the shot, should I consider some kind of ad back therapy? My symptoms aren't that bad but I guess I'm worried about bone loss? As I read more posts, I don't see any stories of 6 mos of Lupron.

I feel stupid for not asking him but when I initially met with drs about a hysterectomy, they talked about my uterus in terms of weeks pregnant or my fibroids in terms of fruit sizes or in cm. This was the first time 2200/1700 CCs was used. What does that mean?

Thanks in advance!

roxyrue, to HysterSisters!
CC refers to cubic centimetres, the metric unit for volume, which is commonly used to describe fibroid sizes. I can certainly understand your confusion; I'm a more visual person myself, so when my doctor told me that my largest fibroid was 10cm across, I asked for a size reference, and he mentioned a jumbo grapefruit. I was told my uterus was the size of a 22 week pregnancy; I Googled that, and found out that it was equivalent to a jumbo papaya. I was given 2 monthly shots of Lupron to shrink everything, so my surgery could be done laparoscopically. As I understand it, 6 months is the recommended maximum, after which concerns would be raised about bone strength and other menopausal symptoms. It works by blocking estrogen production, which is what's feeding the growth of the fibroids, so I don't think add back therapy would be appropriate here. If you are worried about bone loss, be sure to get plenty of weight bearing exercise, like walking or lifting weights, and with your surgeon's approval, take supplemental calcium, magnesium, and Vitamin D. Best wishes for a successful surgery and a smooth recovery!

Thank you!!