Hi Everyone, I am really confused and petrified about treatment. Following a routine smear in Jan 2013 referred for colposcopy where I had a couple of biopsies and pictures taken, then received a call to come in to see consultant, who told me they suspected I had early stages of cervix cancer and booked me in for a knife cone biopsy but did a sweep and took some more biopsies in the meanwhile whilst I waited. Following the knife cone biopsy the consultant is suggesting I have a hysterectomy and removal of my ovaries which is causing me a lot of anxiety as I don't want the surgery but my family feels I should go along with the treatment plan.
The consultant told me my smear showed high grade glandular cell abnormality but the biopsies kept coming back inconclusive which feels may have been as I had some treatment, the consultant said he could see 2 patches of growth hence the knife cone biopsy. The knife cone biopsy showed the patches were precancerous glandular cells and not turned cancerous as the consultant first suspected. The consultant feels I should have a hysterectomy with removal of ovaries as the high grade cgin were high up in the cervix and although he feels he got it all he feels cgin skips lesions sOn practice is to
overtreat as in the future any abnormal cell willnot show up as it was an inwards growth. I am 46 single parent and don't have alot of support, I don't think I can cope with the thought of going through an early menopause and feel I rather just walk away.
Any advice would be appreciated on whether I should go ahead or not. I feel if I don't go ahead and there is a rogue cell then it may be discovered too late as I have been lucky this time. I have heart disease and stroke in the family and have read the chances of developing these increase when you have a hysterectomy which causes medically-induced menopause.
This is driving me crazy what to do. My. Family/children want me to have the hysterectomy asthey feel this gives me a good chance to not develop cancer as originally my medical. Notes. Said adenocarcinoma. In situ.
Sorry seem to have a duplicate thread
I would like to know how people have found it coping with the induced menopause and hysterectomy. The consultant told me even if I keep my ovaries there is a 50/50 chance the ovaries stop working.
Hi Rita,
So sorry to read your news. It’s a scary and upsetting business and we all understand how you feel.
I’m afraid nobody can tell you what to do, but if you have a diagnosis, you should have been assigned a specialist nurse to support you and I would strongly recommend making an appointment to talk your case through with her. She will be able to explain more about your diagnosis and explain exactly why they are suggesting this course of treatment. She’ll also be able to talk to you about the likely effects of treatment, including discussing your worries about menopause. At my hospital the gynae oncology nurses have a weekly clinic session where they have more time to talk and I found them amazingly helpful.
Like you, I had adenocarcinoma, and one of the difficulties is that it can be difficult to detect exactly what is there as it can occur higher up in the lining of the cervix and womb. Have you had an MRI yet? I know how scary it is, and none of us want to have surgery, but make sure that any decision you make is based on all the facts and not just fear. We all want this to go away, but running away isn’t the answer.
By the way, I was 48 when I had my surgery and had no menopause symptoms before my diagnosis. I was told that 50 was the average age for menopause to start and it did seem to me that the medics therefore seemed to think it shouldn’t be an issue to have it thrust upon me, so to speak. It still feels like a lot to deal with on top of everything else though, even though I’m not as young as some of the other women here. However, it’s a price worth paying to be free of the disease, I feel, and I’m dealing with it as best I can.
Good luck in deciding what to do and do let us know how you get on. You can get through this, and you’ll be surprised how much support you can tap into with friends, family and neighbours. If anyone offers to help, use them!
Keep in touch. Xxx
Hi Rita
I think we all start this journey being scared out of our wits and what you are feeling is a normal response to feeling afraid of how the treatment might affect you. If it helps what I feared most did not happen to me. I had a medically induced menopause (aged 42) which was a result of the treatment (chemo/radiotherapy) as could not have a hysterectomy as stage 2b//tumour too big/spread outside cervix and lymph nodes involved. For some reason I did not fear the menopause but was scared of the unknown and experiencing pain/side effects of the treatment which was also not the case.
I can honestly say I did not experience any menopausal symptoms whatsoever so you might not also. I think the key is to talk to the professionals and the support nurses/get the support you need. They will help answer your questions and help you cope with the treatment so dont suffer alone.
Take care and be vocal about your concerns make sure you get support.
Thank you for your support. My diagnosis changed halfway through treatment from adenocarcinoma in situ to precancerous cgin.when I asked why there was different results the consultant said he thinks I responded to treatment done at the biopsies and the treatment should carry on as the facts are i c
arry these cells which skip lesions making them hard to detect. I am going to go back to see the nurse and talk to my gp as even though I agreed to have the surgery I am not sure if to . This illness is so unpredictable and I guess that's why it's being on a rollercaster.
