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Recovery after ovary removal surgery?
I am 41 with a strong family history of cancer. My mother had breast AND kidney cancer, and I recently lost my father to metastatic colorectal cancer. That being said, after having pain in the area of my left ovary, an ultasound found that I have "something" growing on my left ovary. A repeat ultrasound showed that it is growing, and I was giving the choice to leave it and "watch it" or have it removed. I did have a CA-125 blood test, which was "normal". However, given my experience with cancer, I feel it best to have my ovary removed and pathology done on the cyst/dermoid/mass growing on my ovary. To those of you who have had this surgery performed, I really would love to hear from the patients experience on what to expect during the recovery period. Thanks!
I just had emergency surgery to remove my right ovary due to a cyst that twisted around my ovary. I had no clue it was even possible for that to happen. I was in so much pain all of the sudden. In just a matter of a couple hours I couldn't move due to the pain. I guess you can say I got lucky. My doctor actually thought it was cancer. I'm 38 and cancer runs on both parents side's. My doctor told me going in it would be treated as if I had cancer. Talk about terrified. I was told best case would be only removal of right ovary but until I was opened up they wouldn't know if I needed a complete hysterectomy or if cancer was involved. Lucky for me all that was removed was a football sized ovary that was cancer free. Now 3 days latter I have no clue what to expect. Will anything change? Should I be worried about more cysts? What now? This happened Sunday it's Tuesday now. Any one with similar experience?
1 Comments
Glad to hear the cyst was benign / non-cancerous. I hope you're recovered from your surgery. Hopefully, your remaining ovary will pick up the slack for the one that was removed. Watch for signs of reduced ovarian function if your menstrual cycle does not return to normal.
COMMUNITY LEADER
A recovery of 3-4 days is unrealistic. I do not know the normal recovery time for that as I had open/abdominal surgery.
However, in my opinion, the bigger concern is that he is going to remove your ovary and tubes. There is no guarantee that your other ovary will take over for either its reproductive / fertility role OR its lifelong endocrine role that is SO important to keeping you healthy and aging at a normal (versus accelerated) rate.
Removal of any part of the "reproductive" system (it is for much more than reproduction) increases risk of ovarian failure and overall endocrine dysfunction. The removal of your ovary alone could cause permanent dysfunction but removing the tubes further increases this risk.
Do yourself and your lifelong health a big favor and seek out a surgeon with good cystectomy skills who can remove just the cyst leaving the ovary or enough of it to continue producing its vital hormones. You are worth it!
However, in my opinion, the bigger concern is that he is going to remove your ovary and tubes. There is no guarantee that your other ovary will take over for either its reproductive / fertility role OR its lifelong endocrine role that is SO important to keeping you healthy and aging at a normal (versus accelerated) rate.
Removal of any part of the "reproductive" system (it is for much more than reproduction) increases risk of ovarian failure and overall endocrine dysfunction. The removal of your ovary alone could cause permanent dysfunction but removing the tubes further increases this risk.
Do yourself and your lifelong health a big favor and seek out a surgeon with good cystectomy skills who can remove just the cyst leaving the ovary or enough of it to continue producing its vital hormones. You are worth it!
I am scheduled to have a 10cm simple cyst, right ovary, and tube removed laproscopically in one week. I trust my doctor, although, he told me to expect a recovery time of about 3 -4 days. He also informed me that I should not go into early menopause because my left ovary would eventually compensate for the missing right ovary. After reading these posts, I am very frustrated. It seems that everyone has had a negative experience. Is there anyone out there that actually recovered within a week? After all, how did they come up with that length of time if no one has ever recovered that quickly? Is the pain from the carbon dioxide gas really that overwhelmingly bad? Really????
regretting reader
regretting reader
COMMUNITY LEADER
Welcome to the community! I am sorry you are dealing with this! I have been in your shoes and hopefully my experience can give you some insight on how to proceed.
I also had a 9cm ovarian cyst but mine was described as "complex." Since I do not have a family history of ovarian cancer, this cyst had a VERY LOW risk of being cancerous (a woman without risk factors has a less than 2% lifetime risk of ovarian cancer). I had been a patient of my gynecologist for 20 years and had a lot of respect for him so I trusted that he would do what was best for my short and long-term health. I ended up being over-treated. My gynecologist did a frozen section of the cyst/ovary while I was in the operating room. He waited for the results to come back and even though they came back benign (non-cancerous), he proceeded to remove the rest of my "reproductive" organs - the other ovary, my uterus, and tubes. I was 49 but since the "reproductive" organs have LIFELONG functions, I have been suffering the effects ever since (9 years now). My gyn/surgeon should have removed just the cyst and nothing else.
MOST ovarian cysts are benign and, from what I have read, dermoid cysts are always benign. You should not have to lose any organs. A surgeon who has good cystectomy (cyst removal) skills should be able to remove just the cyst and preserve your ovary or enough of it for hormone production. Unfortunately, too many women lose their female part(s) unnecessarily. So it may take a bit of work to find a surgeon with the proper skills and ethics to keep all your parts and their vital, LIFELONG non-reproductive functions. Intact women's ovaries produce hormones up to at least age 80. Removal of any part of the "reproductive" system can wreak permanent havoc on health and quality of life. There are some women who have posted here who had ovarian cysts removed without losing their ovary(ies). This site is helpful in understanding ovarian cysts and their treatment - http://ovaryresearch.com/ovarian_cysts.htm.
Best of luck to you in getting restorative treatment. Feel free to post back with any questions or concerns. And let us know how this progresses.
I also had a 9cm ovarian cyst but mine was described as "complex." Since I do not have a family history of ovarian cancer, this cyst had a VERY LOW risk of being cancerous (a woman without risk factors has a less than 2% lifetime risk of ovarian cancer). I had been a patient of my gynecologist for 20 years and had a lot of respect for him so I trusted that he would do what was best for my short and long-term health. I ended up being over-treated. My gynecologist did a frozen section of the cyst/ovary while I was in the operating room. He waited for the results to come back and even though they came back benign (non-cancerous), he proceeded to remove the rest of my "reproductive" organs - the other ovary, my uterus, and tubes. I was 49 but since the "reproductive" organs have LIFELONG functions, I have been suffering the effects ever since (9 years now). My gyn/surgeon should have removed just the cyst and nothing else.
MOST ovarian cysts are benign and, from what I have read, dermoid cysts are always benign. You should not have to lose any organs. A surgeon who has good cystectomy (cyst removal) skills should be able to remove just the cyst and preserve your ovary or enough of it for hormone production. Unfortunately, too many women lose their female part(s) unnecessarily. So it may take a bit of work to find a surgeon with the proper skills and ethics to keep all your parts and their vital, LIFELONG non-reproductive functions. Intact women's ovaries produce hormones up to at least age 80. Removal of any part of the "reproductive" system can wreak permanent havoc on health and quality of life. There are some women who have posted here who had ovarian cysts removed without losing their ovary(ies). This site is helpful in understanding ovarian cysts and their treatment - http://ovaryresearch.com/ovarian_cysts.htm.
Best of luck to you in getting restorative treatment. Feel free to post back with any questions or concerns. And let us know how this progresses.
Hello. I am 34 years old. about 3 weeks ago I went to ER because I had pain on both sides of ribs. After various tests doctors said everything came back normal, however CT scan revealed a mass in my pelvis, 9cm. I was referred to a OB/gyn. GYN told me it's a dermoid cyst on my right ovary, . I am scheduled for surgery in two weeks. I may loose my right or both ovaries. I have a child but I had plans for another child. I feel very scared cyst might be cancerous. I've lost sleep thinking about it. Reading many of your posts has brought a little comfort, but I feel very scared.
COMMUNITY LEADER
So they are sure it is a dermoid and it won't go away on its own? Is your surgeon going to remove just the cyst (cystectomy)? Some surgeons do not have good cystectomy skills. Removal of even one ovary can negatively impact fertility and long-term health.
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