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OCTOBER, 2018 | The HEALTH
13
O B - GYN
Non-cancerous
growths in or around
the womb
WOMEN & INFANTS’ FERTILITY CENTRE
F
ibroids is an overgrowth of the muscle
of the womb which is non-cancerous.
It is manifest as small bumps – small
tumours on the uterus. It can vary in its
position, and essentially can be on the
surface, within the uterus, can be pedunculated
– meaning it has a stalk and a growth. This is
depending on where it is.
Symptoms
Symptoms may vary according
to each individual. However, the
most common would be heavy
and painful periods. At other
times, the patient may feel pres-
sure if the fibroid is more than
five centimetres. If it’s like a small
little lemon and it is in the front
– it could press on the bladder so
that would cause urinary
incontinence.
At other times, very huge
fibroids can block the urinary pas-
sage, resulting in severe pain. This
is when intervention is required
where a tube is inserted to relieve
the patient. Some may also feel a
hard firm growth in the tummy.
Sometimes, outsides of periods,
there may be on and off pain.
Most women would not know
that they have fibroids as it does
not exhibit any symptoms. They
would probably learn about it
during a routine medical check-up
or when they are pregnant.
Who are at risk
It essentially affects women of
reproductive age – young ladies
around the age of 20’s to 40’s. This
may continue to grow as fibroids
derives its growth from hormones.
However, once a woman attains
menopause, it will shrink.
Genetics is a predominant
factor. If a patient’s mother or
grandmother has it – then there is
a likelihood of that person being
more at risk. There are some racial
ethnicity predominance as well
where fibroids are commonly seen
in African women. Nevertheless in
Malaysia, we see it all across the
board.
BY DR PATRICIA
LIM SU LYN
When fibroids become
dangerous
RF123
A female’s reproduction can be
affected if the fibroids are inside
the uterus. This can cause miscar-
riage or if pregnant can constrict
the baby from turning or result in
premature delivery.
Intervention
There a few ways of managing
fibroids. Firstly, if the lady has no
symptoms at all, the fibroids are
left and monitored.
There are also medications
available, but unfortunately the
medications are hormone based
and it doesn’t allow pregnancy.
The other option; surgery known
as a myomectomy involves remov-
ing the fibroids. The risk involved
with this surgery is bleeding.
When the fibroids are removed,
a cavity is created which is later
closed up. In the process, if the
womb continues to bleed – there’s
a small percentage that the patient
may suffer from loss of blood and
in severe cases, the whole womb
would need to be removed.
Dr Patricia Lim Su Lyn is a
consultant obstetrician and gynae-
cologist at KPJ Tawakkal Specialist
Hospital. She can be contacted at
drpatricia@kpjtawakkal.com
“Most women would not know
that they have fibroids as it does
not exhibit any symptoms. They
would probably learn about it
during a routine medical check-
up or when they are pregnant.”
Does soya cause
fibroids?
SOY is rich in phytoes-
trogens or plant estrogens
called isoflavones, which
are similar in structure to
human estrogen but not
as potent. Because they’re
weaker, it’s believed these
plant estrogens could act as
anti-estrogens and serve as a
potential protection against
several hormonal diseases.
Uterine fibroids, although
non-cancerous, are tumors
thought to respond to
estrogen and progesterone
levels. For this reason, many
question whether soy intake
will protect or worsen the
condition.
KPJ Tawakkal Specialist
Hospital Consultant Obste-
trician and Gynaecologist Dr
Patricia Lim Su Lyn explains
that based on scientific evi-
dence, there is no foods that
are known to cause fibroids.
“Some school of thoughts
have been to avoid soya
based foods as it contains
natural estrogen. However,
it is not really proven. Scien-
tifically, there are no specific
food that a person need to
avoid.”