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An Acessa Patient Shares Her Bold Journey to Discover a Better Treatment For Painful Fibroids
My fibroids were detected at an annual gynecological check-up over 10 years ago. My OB/GYN noticed the fibroids manually. She sent me to get an ultrasound where they said there were a few fibroids, but not very large, so I didn’t do anything about them. For years, I noticed at every check-up my fibroids were getting larger.
My sister was diagnosed with a large fibroid, the size of a grapefruit, when she was 50. She did a total hysterectomy, and I took care of her post-surgery. She was miserable, and felt awful and depressed for months. It took her a long time to overcome a hysterectomy, and today she is still greatly saddened about having her uterus removed.
A recent ultrasound showed six uterine fibroids measuring at 3, 4, and 6 cm, and I was referred to a fibroid specialist OB/GYN. My three suggested options were as follows:
1. Hysterectomy was the preferred and suggested recommendation.
2. Myomectomy was the next suggested option, where the fibroids could be cut out.
3. Fibroid Embolization, an option when PVA particles are injected into uterine arteries through a catheter. These particles then choke off the blood supply to fibroids.
I went on a consultation with a Fibroid Embolization Doctor to explore my options. With embolization, post surgery requires an overnight hospital stay, because of the extensive pain cramping.
Another side effect of the surgery is a higher body temperature that may last for days, because your body goes into attack mode over the loss of uterine blood.
I attended a fibroid seminar to hear other women and their fibroid issues. There are so many women with fibroids, with excessive bleeding, anemia, fatigue, and cramping pressure. I have heavy bleeding and heavy bladder pressure, and there are many women with even worse conditions than me.
A personal friend suggested Dr. Bruce Lee in Beverly Hills. I felt intuitively excited about the Acessa procedure. A less invasive option, and I liked the idea that your own body, once the procedure was done, broke down the fibroids and got rid of them naturally.
From my most recent ultrasound, I showed my results to Dr. Lee. He said he was curious on why the measurements on this report made it seem like my uterus was so large when the numbers and sizes of fibroids didn’t add up. We moved forward with a new ultrasound and found even more fibroids, which was the result of a large uterus.
I’m 50, so a virtual colonoscopy was a necessary check-up. He confirmed what Dr. Lee had told me, my uterus was large and pressing on my bladder, causing my organs to move. I moved forward with my appointment for the Acessa procedure.
Dr. Lee was extremely detailed and very patient with all my questions leading up to the procedure. This was my first surgery, so I was nervous.
My Acessa procedure took around two hours, which is what Dr. Lee had predicted. When I woke up he told me that I had a total of 15 fibroids, none seen by the previous ultrasounds.
After the procedure, I was home within two and a half hours, with one dose of OTC pain relief to be preventative with the pain (I didn’t know what to expect).
I felt tender in my belly area and incision site, and in the days preceding, I felt bloated from the anesthesia and air (very common for any surgery). Two days after my procedure, I began to feel some cramping which Dr. Lee stated was the uterus contracting, which is a good thing. The uterus is trying to get smaller and the beginning stages of breaking down the dead fibroids. Days after surgery, I was out to dinner, and after the weekend, I was back to a full workday.
I could already feel the difference. I didn’t feel those hard knots down in my lower belly. I didn’t feel that dense muscle mass sensation down there that made me feel so stiff. And I didn’t feel the need to urinate every two seconds! After years of fibroid symptoms, I couldn’t be more grateful for Dr. Bruce Lee and the Acessa procedure.
-E