Risks/Benefits to keeping the cervix?

So I'm undecided on keeping my cervix. My doctor said its completely in my court to make the decision. Part of me says to keep it.

It's totally up to you some women have kept theirs some have not. Both has a total different out look on it. Some women who have kept theirs experience mini periods. I kept mind and I am 6 months post op no mini periods for me. My dr. did a great job cauterizing my cervix to eliminate mini periods. He did tell me before hand that some women have theirs cauterize, however, they still end up with mini periods. From what I have read their are no real science facts that keeping your cervix will keep you from having prolapses or bladder issues. My advice to you is to talk to your dr.

I am having a tvh and leaving my overies and tubes. I also planned on leaving my cervix. After reading and talking to my doctor about this he explained that there are chances of having bleeding (mini Periods) and also he has had some women have to come back and have there cervix removed later..I was so worried about all the "what if's" and he said I could leave it if I really wanted but would recomend taking it , well I had a yearly pap last week and it just came back with abnormal cells.. Now I am going to definatly have him take the cervix.. guess it is for the best, don't want to run the risk of cervical cancer or another surgery later... I have 2 friends that have have a total hyterectomy and they say nothing has changed for them ..(the big O).... but they feel so much better.. I guess this decision is only up to you and your doc for medical reason's.. I hope it all goes well. My surgey is on July 2nd and I will post then... good luck...Jo

Thanks for sharing your experience. I haven't heard about the mini periods. I'm glad you don't have them!

	Quote:
Originally Posted by kishey It's totally up to you some women have kept theirs some have not. Both has a total different out look on it. Some women who have kept theirs experience mini periods. I kept mind and I am 6 months post op no mini periods for me. My dr. did a great job cauterizing my cervix to eliminate mini periods. He did tell me before hand that some women have theirs cauterize, however, they still end up with mini periods. From what I have read their are no real science facts that keeping your cervix will keep you from having prolapses or bladder issues. My advice to you is to talk to your dr.

Thanks for sharing your decision making process. It is really helpful to hear what other people are doing. I hope July gets here soon for you!

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Originally Posted by jo123 I am having a tvh and leaving my overies and tubes. I also planned on leaving my cervix. After reading and talking to my doctor about this he explained that there are chances of having bleeding (mini Periods) and also he has had some women have to come back and have there cervix removed later..I was so worried about all the "what if's" and he said I could leave it if I really wanted but would recomend taking it , well I had a yearly pap last week and it just came back with abnormal cells.. Now I am going to definatly have him take the cervix.. guess it is for the best, don't want to run the risk of cervical cancer or another surgery later... I have 2 friends that have have a total hyterectomy and they say nothing has changed for them ..(the big O).... but they feel so much better.. I guess this decision is only up to you and your doc for medical reason's.. I hope it all goes well. My surgey is on July 2nd and I will post then... good luck...Jo

I had my TVH due to fibroids, dysfunctional uterine bleeding and adenomyosis. I did not keep my cervix and for me, it was probably the right decision since the cervix is not a separate organ but the bottom portion of the uterus. For me, keeping it may have caused me problems down the road since there is not exact place to cut the cervix off of the uterus, uterine tissue would remain and fibroids and adeno could continue to grow on it.

There is an article on the Pre-Op page that discusses it and you might find it interesting:

Keep Cervix? Hysterectomy Planning

I don't miss my cervix and having it removed hasn't been an issue for me. Many women keep their cervix and never had a problem! I encourage you to do your research, talk to your doctor and make an informed decision.



Deb

	Quote:
Originally Posted by philliesfan So I'm undecided on keeping my cervix. My doctor said its completely in my court to make the decision. Part of me says to keep it.

hi sweetie ,,,,,another thought for you ......i was able to keep my cervix , ( thank god ),and have no problems at all ,nothing with mini periods , ( thank god )nothing dropping or hanging out ( thank god ) and no difference at all with sex,, at least not yet lolllllllllllllllll
i have some other things such as ....very , very tired still , some cramping on and off because i have some small cysts on my ovaries since surgery and i have pressure every once in a while ..
I pray everyday that nothing falls out ..........lolllllllllllll

everyone is different !!!!!!

In my estimation:

Risks in having the cervix removed: None
Benefits from ditching it: Never getting (or dying from) cervical cancer

I hope that in partnership with your medical provider you make the surgical decisions that wind up being the best ones for you.

s,

Hello philliesfan,

I'm facing the same question. I asked my doctor would she be removing the cervix and she recommended that I have it removed because of possible abnormal cells. When she recommends stuff to me it's always open for me to disagree with her, so I could tell her that I do not want to have it removed. Since I'm going to her for her expertise, I ask her advice and then take it.

If she'd left it in my court I would ask her given my age, health, etc what would she do and I'd go with that. I just read that article that Crossfire suggested. Good stuff. Removed any doubts that I might have had. I'm opting to have it removed. Hope you are able to come to a decision that you are ok with.

~Peace

Thanks for all of the replies! My doctor said she would like to remove the cervix and told me the biggest benefit is that leaving it makes the surgery shorter since the cervix can be hard to remove. I was very curious to see what other people thought since she ultimately left the ball in my court.