breast cancer survivor with pelvic floor issues

Hi ladies..Im a 20 years cancer survivor..I'm 63 years old. Going thru menopause I was never given hrt. Ten years ago I had a D & C for heavy bleeding,
after that I never had problems, A few years into menopause I was told I had fibroids, but if I had no pain and bleeding I was not to worry, never had problems until this year. Went to the Dr b/c I was feeling dry and he rx estrogen cream, two weeks into the cream I began to have all the symptoms of prolapse(good thing I have read about this condition)went back to the DR (gp) and was diagnose with rectocele and cystocele.
I have an appt. schedule with a urogyn on Oct.23. I'm urinated ok and I don't let myself get constipated (high fiber, milk of magnesia and occasional laxative) I'm scared, and at my age dont want any more surgeries. I want to ask the Dr about getting the pessary. What do you ladies think?? Any advice will be greatly appreciated and i thank you in advance. Why do we women have to go thru all this crap

So sorry we have to go through this! I have prolapse immediately following the birth of my son 5 and a half months ago. I wish I had known of this condition-I would have asked for a c-section. I can't help but be filled with regret at not having a c-section-I wouldn't be plagued with this depressing condition! I use a pessary and while it is not without its problems, it is worth it. I've been wearing it for about 3 months. Best of luck to you!

Thanks for your response..I had 3 natural births, like you I wish I had know about this, seems like nobody talks about it. I know many women that had had hysterectomies, now I wonder if they were going in for pelvic issues but were embarrassed to talk about this. Are you planing to have more babies???? I'm just at my wits ends...I'm to old for this!

Hi,

I don't really understand too much about your situation except that I've had breast cancer treatment twice and had three uterine fibroids. I decided to have hysterectomy/oophorectomy a year ago when I learned another family member was undergoing cancer surgery/treatment.

I've been feeling great since the prophylactic procedure. My neurosurgeon had told me in 2003 that "a person who's had one type of cancer is more likely to have another type of cancer." My genetic testing did show some kind of increased risks, so the insurance company approved the procedure.

Pepa- I'm a little confused about the symptoms starting right after you started a vaginal HRT cream because LACK of estrogen usually contributes to prolapse and they treat it with vaginal estrogen creams. Were you not on HRT because of the breast cancer? And have you had a BRCA analysis to determine if you are positive for one of those genes and if yours is estrogen fueled or not? If you're confused about what I'm talking about read up on here-

http://www.bracnow.com/

Were your ovaries removed with your hysterectomy? I'm a little confused about the "big picture" here, sorry

I am only 30, BRCA positive both 1 and 2, have a very strong family history of breast cancer before age 40, had uterine cancer and had my ovaries removed with my hysterectomy due to complex cysts on them. I also had alot of pelvic floor repairs then as well. I wasn't put on HRT due to my risks, but within 6 months my vaginal walls weren't healing properly and thinning and my prolapse was returning. My new dr put me on Vivelle Dot (not cream because the dot was easier to control the dose per say) and it helped strengthen my stuff down there some. I know you don't want additional surgery, I haven't done a pessary, I don't think I could because I couldnt even stand a tampon in my vagina back before I had surgery. Did your gp do a pelvic exam to diagnose? And why are you not seeing the Urogyn until October?? Thats 9 months away

I would def have a pelvic floor specialist look at it, tell them your concerns and history and ask about the non-surgical treatments you could have. I personally, not knowing the degree of your problems or how active you are can't tell you if I think surgery may be better, but I know for me at my age, I would be more likely to want something more solid than a pessary, but that's me.

Prolapsedpost- Having a C-section doesn't really prevent prolapse, the baby has been sitting there putting pressure and strain on the muscles and stuff for 9 months. I have 5 kids, all of mine were over 9lbs when born and I had them all vaginally. Yes I had prolapse and it was likely from childbirth, but I have a friend that has 2 kids 6lbs each and were c-section babies and she has prolapse too.

And for everyone, never be embarassed to talk about things! I guarantee its nothing your doctor has never heard or seen before!

Take Care and I hope you get help soon Pepa

Thank you for the replies-this forum is so helpful to me. I wish it were true that c-section didn't matter, but I've read 95% of prolapsed women gave birth vaginally. I actually thought about elective c-section because I had an INTENSE fear of childbirth. I remember telling my doctor how concerned I was about my nether region. He reassured me as doctors do. Look what happened! Ugh! So full of regret

Hi,

I am not a breast cancer survivor but I would like to offer you some advice.
I was 57 years old when I had all four prolapses repaired. I know my cystocele occurred because I delivered my 9lb 2oz son vaginally. Many years later I had a TAH/BSO which, I believe, caused the other prolapses.

My uro/gyn tried fitting me with a pessary but I was not able to retain it and the next size up was very painful so I opted for surgery. The surgery was very successful and I'm happy I had it done. I say, try a pessary but if it doesn't help the surgery will take care of the prolapses. My uro/gyn doesn't use mesh for repairs because he's seen to many problems and it is hard to remove. In your discussion with your uro/gyn you should ask about his position on using mesh.

Good luck and keep us posted...

Diana

My mistake...my appointment with the urogyn is on FEBRUARY23rd and that is 30days from today. The urogyn is one of the best in this area, I live in Denver Colorado. I'm looking forward to what she has to say.
My breast cancer was 20 years ago, went thru all the standard treatment(surgery,chemo,radiation and 5 years of Tamoxifen) never to this day had recurrence. My cancer was estrogen and progesterone positive. Why I wasn't put on HRT.
In 1997 I had a D&C for some heavy bleeding, everything went fine.Went thru menopause with no problems, no pain,no more bleeding, everything below my waist was great...until October15 when I went for my annual check-up and told my Dr. I was feeling abit dry, since it has been 20 years since the breast cancer he said i could use the estrogen cream. No prolapse at this time. Two weeks into using the cream all the symptoms started (coincidence??) I though I was swollen b/c of the cream. Back to the Dr I go and sure enough he told me I had prolapse. He was as surprise as I was and immediately told me to make the appointment with the urogyn.
For me surgery will be the last resort..I will try anything before surgery, will I be able to use a pessary I hope so.
I have only been prolapse for 2 months, so I hope its not to bad. I thank God that I did not have 4 or 5 kids. So that's my story. I will post again after my appointment.

Tater218.. I have not had a hysterectomy. Sorry I forgot to say that. No need for one so far.