results from MRI stage cancer at 1b1 .....was strangley pleased that 'only ' had to go through a radical hysterectomy ! My question is the consultant has said that it is up to me wether my ovaries are removed at the same time .He said a few years ago they would have been removed without question but these days he is of the opinion that unless there is strong evidence to suggest may cause further issues then he would be happy to leave them if i so chose . I am 42 and in a 'grey' area so to speak ....under 40 he would say leave them over 45 take them out as probably nearing menopause anyway .
I am leaning towards leaving them as feel recovery and menopause may push me over the edge lol and maybe a natural menopause in 4/5 years time may be less harsh than suddenly inducing one because of surgery.!
Its a bit of a dilemma as to the best way to go and wondered if anyone had any advice please good or bad !
Sorry you've been diagnosed, but welcome to Jo's which is a great place for support and advice.
I am 38 and had the same dilemma. I had two surgeons operating on me and saw them both in the weeks leading up to the operation. Both recommended ovary removal although it was optional and not strictly necessary in my case.
My decision was probably knee-jerk in that I have two young children and wanted to minimise the risk of a recurrence as much as possible so I could see them grow up. I also spoke to a lady leading up to the operation who had a radical hysterectomy and then had a recurence on her ovaries 4 years later. She had to then go through chemo. That confirmed the decision in my mind - I knew the risks were very slim but couldn't have lived with them. Plus the stats shocked me, when I looked it up something like 1 in 100 women get ovarian cancer. So I figured if I get them removed in future I may have less chance of cancer than an average woman. I'm a born worrier and removing my ovaries has really given me peace of mind.
Even though I'm not sure that HRT is really agreeing with me yet I don't regret my decision one bit. My rationale was that I would have to go through the menopause at some point anyway. I have heard that people who have a hysterectomy tend to go through the menopause earlier, but I don't know whether this is true or not and it may be something to discuss with your consultant.
It's not an easy decision to make. Everyone is different though and only you can make your choice, for your own reasons.
Whatever route you take, I'd like to wish you the best of luck with your treatment and a speedy recovery.
Last night i was all for keeping them as i figured getting over the op would be bad enough without menopausel symptons possibly adding to the mix and going through a natural menopause in 5/6 years time would be better than going cold turkey lol Hopefully after the op I will be given the all clear but should something be found that wasnt spotted in the mri then i guess radiation treatment will stop them working anyway !
It is really hard and a bit more research may probably be needed ...my op is the 4 feb which was much quicker than i thought so not much time !
Im glad your treatment has worked for you and you are all clear ....looking forward to the day when that happens to me : )
Glad to hear you are being very positive on diagnosis and welcome to a great site for all the info you will need.
For me ovaries out was a no brainer( but i am 47) i still had the choice but to me it seemed a bit pointless to keep them and potentially have more problems later and have to have another op to remove them at a later date.
A surgical menopause i was told would be swift and difficult and i was given HRT to start day 3 post op. I decided i wanted to wait and see if i had symptoms before i took the HRT.
Week 5 post op i have vague mild sweats odd nights but otherwise am not yet aware of any other symptoms. I wanted to be able to differentiate between post op and menapause symptoms and am managing fine. I still have the option of taking HRT if things change in the future but i am glad i didn't assume i needed it.
Obviously everyone is different but i wanted to share with you my experience so you can make a balanced decision that is right for you
Best of luck with your decision and looking ahead your op too.
Thanks Kath its really helpful to hear of other peoples experiences and the fact that the option is easily available to take HRT is useful...like you I dont really want to assume I will need it and maybe thats swaying my decision to keep the ovaries where they are!
It is also heartning to hear that potentially the menopause dosn't have to be as bad as I think ..... I'm more worried by early menopause than the actual op I think lol
I do know that whatever I decide there is always such good support on this site and it has been so helpful in what is such a worrying and stressful time for us all .
It sounds like your recovery is going well Kath and hope it continues to do so
I was very interested in reading your posts as I have been thinking about the topic of ovarie's a lot and it is a complete dilema! I think peace of mind having them out would be good but menapause not so good! Doctors are unsure which treatment i need hysterectomy or radiation/chemo. I am 29 and they do not want to put me in early menapause but the peace of mind fd having them out would be wonderful. I can completley sympathise with you Jenny, when you have cancer it feels as if there are no good choices some times! I think you are putting a lot of thought into it and I know you will make the right decision for you. I wish you the very best and I am sending out loads of positive thoughts x x x
