Frequently Asked Questions

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While not cancerous, uterine fibroids can cause problems that affect a women’s overall health. Depending on the size, location and number of fibroids, common symptoms can include:
• Pelvic pain and pressure
• Excessive bleeding, including prolonged periods and passage of clots, which can lead to severe anemia
• Abdominal swelling
• Pressure on the bladder, leading to frequent urination
• Pressure on the bowel, leading to constipation and bloating
• Multiple miscarriages or early labor

Infertility--- Research from 2006 indicates that incidence of infertility is higher in African American women than in Caucasian women, and that infertility among Black women has steadily been increasing, whereas it is decreasing among white women (Chandra, and Stephen 2006).

Uterine fibroids are non-cancerous tumors which can also be called fibromyomas, leiomyomas or myomas,. They are growth of muscle within the uterine wall. The size of a fibroid can range from a small seed to larger than a grapefruit before they're discovered. There can be multiple fibroids or one single growth and can be located on the surface of the uterus, in the wall of the uterus, or in the uterine cavity.

Fibroids are made of muscle cells and other tissues that grow within and around the muscular wall of the uterus. They are also composed of extracellular matrix (eg: collagen).

Uterine fibroids are the most common, non-cancerous tumors in women of childbearing age causing symptoms in approximately 25% of women.

The cause of uterine fibroids is unknown, however, their growth has been linked to the hormone estrogen. As long as a woman with fibroids is menstruating, a fibroid will probably continue to slowly grow.

FIBROIDS ARE DESCRIBED BY THEIR LOCATION IN THE UTERUS.

• Myometrial -- in the muscle wall of the uterus
• Submucosal -- just under the surface of the uterine lining
• Subserosal -- just under the outside covering of the uterus
• Pendunculated -- occurring on a long stalk on the outside of the uterus or inside the cavity of the uterous
Fibroids are highly dependent on the hormone estrogen, so the size may increase during pregnancy when estrogen levels are higher. Fibroids tend to shrink after menopause when estrogen levels drop.

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