Keep cervix? Keep ovaries? Help!

I don't have a surgery date scheduled yet, but it appears that it will be in January. I wasn't surprised last week when my dr. told me that we had exhausted all other possibilities and that it was time for a hysterectomy, but I wasn't expecting him to say that he would recommend taking everything and that it would be an abdominal one!

I need some help in figuring out what I want to do so that when I see him again next week I can tell him what I want to do.

This decision is entirely up to you and your unique situation. I will tell you what I did and why.
I had an abdominal hysterectomy because we (my doctor and I) thought it would be less risky because I have never given birth vaginally.
I wanted to keep my cervix because there was nothing wrong with it. It also serves as stability to my pelvic wall. I was also concerned about lubrication and sex. But again there was nothing wrong with my cervix. I didn't want it damaged so an abdominal one made sense for me.
If you keep your cervix you will still need yearly pelvic exams. You may consider it if you have had cervical cancer in your family or abnormal paps. I never have.
I am 38. I wanted to keep my ovaries. I am worried about weight gain and I really don't want to go into menopause early. I told my doc if something was wrong and she had to remove them then I understood but I wanted to keep them. Thankfully they were fine so they are still there.

I am 4 weeks post op. I am exactly the same just minus a utereus and a period. My SAH was for hemmoraging during periods. Long terrible periods. I just passed through my cycle with no mini period.

Good luck! I am glad to see all your "I's."

I had a TVH (total vaginal hysterectomy) with a rectocele repair. I had a hysterectomy due to fibroids. I wanted a vaginal b/c I had heard it was an easier recovery. In hindsight, I wish I did the abdominal. I had a C-section scar anyway, so they could have gone through that. The thing I didn't know w/ a vaginal is you can have issues w/ granulation tissue. With an abdominal the granulation tissue isn't an issue b/c they are stitching up your cuff (if you don't keep your cervix) on the outside of it and with a vaginal they are stitching up the cuff from the inside, so if you have granulation tissue it will get irritated (during sex, for me) I had to go to the doctor every month for about 4 months for silver nitrate treatments b/c of so much granulation tissue. I didn't keep my cervix, b/c frankly the doctor said I didn't need to and I didn't want to deal with mini periods. So my cervix went to. I did keep my ovaries b/c they were fine and I didn't want to deal w/ HRT's or menopause at 32. Well, 18 months later, I have a cystocele (perhaps could have been avoided if I kept my cervix to support my pelvic floor) and I believe my ovaries have quit working. I've read it's not uncommon a few years later. So it looks like I may be having to deal w/ HRT anyway and another surgery for my cystocele. Sorry to ramble!

Obviously no one here can tell you what is best for you and your situation, we can only share our experiences with you.

I had a vaginal hys. November 7 (just a few days ago!). So far my recovery has been good, uncomfortable w/o a lot of pain.

My dr. took my cervix and left ovary, I still have my right one so no need for HRT . Honestly, I didn't do a lot of research, I truly trusted him and decided he was doing what was best for me. I feel good about my decision and the surgery. As I said, my recovery is good. I had the surgery at 9am, was out of post-op by noon, into a room at the hosp. By about 4pm my catheter was out and I was walking to the restroom (with assistance). I walked around the hospital. by 7pm and was released the next morning about 11am. I'm taking toradol for pain and inflammation, I've usually taken 1 percocet/day, none yet today

Talk to your dr. and then get a second opinion. The first dr. I talked to said there was no way she could do my hys vaginally. The second dr. said no problem. He was right. I went with him and have no regrets

Good luck!


ETA: The reason I didn't do a lot of research was because I sometimes belong to the club of "Ignorance is bliss". The more I know, the more I tend to be freaked out. I always have a hundred things on my mind, so it really wasn't hard for me to keep my head in the sand on this one. Not everyone will agree with me, but for me, it worked

My story is identical to Castlebound with the exception that I had my partial-hysterectomy in 2003 over 5 years ago (when I was 38 years old). I always felt and still feel, that if nothing is wrong with it, why get rid of it. Besides I was very concern about my pelvic wall colapsing without the cervix. But in the end the decission should be yours with consultation of your Doctor. Good luck!!!

I guess I would wonder (for the ovaries) how old you are and what shape your ovaries are in. I was 27 when they did mine (28 now) and they really wanted to try and leave at least one but they weren't sure if they could. When they got in there the right one was "salvagable" so they left it, for now. As for the cervix I had mine taken out, I haven't noticed much of change in sex except that now I don't curl up in pain afterwards!!! If you want also get a second opinion it never hurts!!!Good Luck!

Hi,
I had an Abdominal Hysterectomy, kept ovaries and cervix.
My Dr is an oncologist too and he thought it a good idea to remove all because I am 49 and perimenopausal. (his idea is that I was so close to menopause anyway) Also being that ovarian cancer is so hard to detect early. Some Dr's say if you remove the cervix than you don't need any more pap tests done. From what i read preop, some feel that it is still necessary for paps after a hysterectomy.
Also I read that new test show that your ovaries can release estrogen in small amounts into your 80's. Which is beneficial for all sorts of health issues.
There is no history of Ovarian Cancer in my family. I asked my Dr to remove all if it looked unhealthy. Luckly everything was ok. I kept my cervix thinking that it was a good support to my bladder etc. also for orgasm.
I am 3 weeks post op and feeling really well. Life is so much better without my huge fibroid.
Good luck to you and YOUR decision. Read as much as you can.
Chris

I'm the kind of person who wants to know every single possibility and figure it out for myself. After a nurse at my gyn's office mentioned "hysterectomy" when telling me I needed to schedule a consultation with the doctor, I went into full-blown research mode. I was afraid that I would either come out of the doctor's office feeling forced into a hysterectomy or come out too stubborn to have listened to what was good common sense for me. Every single website and email list I had been on kept using some variation of the phrase "in your situation" or "what's right for you." I had no idea how to know what was right for me, but I figured I better get good information so I could ask smart questions and know what kinds of answers I wanted to hear from the doctor.

I went to the library and checked out several books on hysterectomy and fibroids and pain, just to help me better understand what my options were. As I read about each possible treatment, I made a list of pros and cons. Over a weekend, I came to see that the hysterectomy truly was the best option for me. As part of this, I also had to let go the fantasy that things might return to the way they were when I was in my 20's. The reality is that nothing would return me to the way things felt way back when, and realizing this made the decision a bit easier.

The bottom line was that by the time I walked into my doctor's office for the consultation, I had arrived at a decision on my own--not just to have a hysterectomy, but about my ovaries and cervix as well. I had been adamantly opposed to the idea of a hysterectomy, but doing my own research into other options was what convinced me that a hysterectomy would accomplish what those other options would not. I was then able to feel like I was doing it for myself. I'm stubborn and independent, and this was really important to me.

And maybe this part is the actual response to your post: Begin by thinking about what you don't want, and why. If you know, for instance, that you really don't want to lose your ovaries, you might want to spend some time thinking about why that is. That might help you in your conversation with the doctor and help him know how to explain his recommendation to you. And as you identify the things you don't want, it's easier to start to see what you do want.

Well written Chris, I did the exact same thing. Read, read, read. Then make the decission that is right for you. Unfortunately there isn't a right or wrong answer. Everyone is different.