In the past, women suffering from fibroids, a painful uterine disorder that afflicts 20 to 50 per cent of women between the ages of 35 and 50, have had limited options when it comes to treatment. Hysterectomies, the complete removal of the uterus, have traditionally been the most commonly prescribed procedure to cure this condition. However, many women are not aware that there are less severe alternatives to this invasive treatment. In particular, uterine fibroid embolization (UFE) can alleviate fibroids without costing women their womb.
Dr. Gaylene Pron, professor of public health sciences at U of T, has led two recent studies to assess the efficacy of this treatment option. She argues that although many hospitals can perform UFEs, women are rarely informed of the existence of this option to hysterectomies.
UFEs work by stopping the blood supply to the fibroid. This causes the fibroids to shrink and be expelled from the body. This technique has a short recovery time, approximately two weeks, as compared with the four to six weeks needed for patients who have undergone hysterectomies. Complications arising from UFEs are considerably reduced versus those incurred by hysterectomy surgery.
Pron worries that this safe and effective treatment is not being discussed with women. Because interventional radiologists and not gynecologists perform UFEs, Pron views this as a barrier to women having access to the procedure. She also asserts that more funding is needed to further investigate the long-term benefits of UFE treatment.
UFE is also being touted as a better treatment for young women in particular who still hope to become mothers. Since this procedure spares their uteruses, Pron believes that they would opt for UFE if given the proper information.
Despite research advances that have been made on UFE, Pron feels that there is still a general unwillingness on the part of the medical community to stray from conventional treatments. She asserts, “Clinicians tend to be more comfortable with the risks we know that are associated with present treatments versus those arising from new techniques.”
Many, however, feel that hysterectomies are still the best option for fibroid treatment. Since it provides an immediate solution to the condition and its symptoms, it is still regarded by many in the medical community as the proper remedy. Pron believes that gynecologists still need to be convinced of the advantages of UFE and thus provide women with this important information. Again, she stresses the importance of research and funding: “At this point, we want to do a five-year follow-up study on UFE, but we have no funding.” She hopes that in the future she will be able to conduct her research in order to further convince her peers of UFE’s benefits and thereby permit women to avoid the risks linked with hysterectomies.
