My mom is almost 41, and hasn’t reached menopause btw. She went to the OB/GYN today, and she left the printouts on the table. I’m a curious person, so I read them. They were from 2 separate occasions.
The 1st occasion she was diagnosed with fibroids, menorrhagia, and dysmenorrhea. The 2nd occasion she was diagnosed with thickened endometrium, menorrhagia, and dysmenorrhea. I searched all of these terms up, and I’m really worried about the fibroids and the thickened endometrium. All I can think in “CANCER, CANCER, CANCER”. Specifically ovarian, breast, or endometrial cancer. The paper also said she should come back for the results of the EMBX (anyone know what that is??) in 2 weeks. I’m so scared!!! This is just killing me.
Also, we’re an immigrant family, and going to the doctor regularly isn’t something our culture is used to. But, we go to the dentist often enough, and have a regular checkup once a year. It’s more like ‘go to the doctor AFTER you’re sick’, instead of before (to prevent it). So it’s more reactive, rather than proactive. I’m not even sure if there’s anything to worry about, but I feel like telling my mom to get another opinion, even though I don’t even know what’s going on.
I’m not really familiar with these terms and how often they occur, so am I just worrying over nothing?
Googling told me EmBx refers to an endometrial biopsy, which she has apparently had, since they want her to come back for the results.
Wait for the results and then she will know where to go from there. Even if it is endometrial cancer, it is often caught early. My mother had uterine cancer and it was treated with surgery, and it never returned in the 21 years until she died of other causes.
You shouldnt worry. I dont know your ethnicity, but women of color,(Blacks, Indian, etc), have a high rate of fibroids. When you have fibroids, it causes a host of other problems, namely the menorrhagia. Most fibroids are benign, and they are very much a nuisance, and are probably causing a thickening of the uterine wall due to scarring.
My guess is that she went to see the doctor because of heavy (menorrhagia) and painful (dysmenorrhea) menstrual periods. These can be debilitating but are not uncommon, and frequently caused by fibroids, which are quite common. The biopsy is probably routine. A common side effect of heavy periods is anemia from the blood loss, leading to fatigue and other symptoms.
It’s unlikely to be cancer and it’s a good thing she’s seeing the doctor for the menstrual issues as there are sevetal possible treatments.
My suggestion: ask your mom. Say something like, “Mom, I know you went to the doctor - is everything ok?” Be supportive and caring.
Uterine Fibroids are very common and non-cancerous. Menorraghia means very heavy periods and is possibly due to the presence of fibroids. Some fibroids do not cause this and some do. Her doctor is being thorough in doing the endometrial biopsy. There are reasons she can have a thickened endometrial lining that have nothing to do with cancer. The biopsy will help to diagnose the cause. Also, uterine cancer is very rare in a woman this young.
For starters, you should not be reading mom’s medical forms. If you’re old enough to be worried, you’re old enough to respect your mom’s privacy, to speak to your mom and not read her medical results.
OK, now that that’s out of the way: how do you know mom hasn’t started menopause yet?? The odds are good that she went to the doctor because she simply wasn’t feeling like herself-- at this point, she knows her body and knew something was changing. Those changes don’t have to mean anything scary, just that her body is changing.
Finally, several years ago I was diagnosed with a Phylodes Tumor in my breast, and needed a mastectomy. It was a rough time. I did several things very right. One of them was NOT to go online and research.
With every bit of good information on the internet, there are 6000 pieces of very scary information that had nothing to do with me. And there’s no way to determine which is which.
So sit with mom, tell her you’re worried, and ask what the doctor said. The BMX is simply a test to see what’s there-- no reason for a second opinion. If you’re comfortable doing so, ask whether you (or your dad, or one of her friends) can accompany her to the next appointment, to write down what the doctor says. I know that when things got rough for me, it was good having another pair of ears in the room to hear what was actually said, as opposed to what I was projecting into those words.
So deep breaths. Talk to mom, be there, and make an effort this summer to pick up some of the housework if she’s feeling tired.
All of that is fairly common as we approach menopause. It is something to see a doctor about but not cause for panic. Do not be alarmed if she is sent for D&C procedure to remove the fibroids. That should relief the heavy and painful periods. Or they may prescribe hormone treatments or birth control pills to treat those symptoms. CAN be cancer but usually isn’t.
I’ve had the fibroids and uncontrolled heavy bleeding with resulting anemia. A D&C, but that doesn’t remove the fibroids. They are still there, but expected to shrink after menopause. This was followed by going on birth control pills for a while, which solved the problem. I don’t recall anything about thickening of the uterus, but they did do an endometrial biopsy just to be sure.
A lot of women have these issues, and it is unlikely to be cancer.
Okay, thank you guys for your input! I’m feeling less worried.
Also @bkjmom I know that I should not have been looking through them, but we’re an open family(of mostly girls), so it would not make her mad that I was curious/worried.
@ZBlue17 if you’re an open family, why don’t you just ask mom? She probably hasn’t told you because it’s not a big deal. As many have said, these are pretty routine issues.
I know what it’s like to have younger parents with health problems so I understand your worry
@romanigypsyeyes I was planning on asking her, but this thread has assured me that these things are normal. Plus, my mom didn’t seem worried at all. I’m just going to stop googling things for now. It makes my imagination run wild
ZBlue, there is a lot of crazy stuff posted on the Internet. It is a good thing you came here. If you decide to google a medical issue in the future, WebMD and the Mayo Clinic are the two reputable sites. And of course, the CC community.
If you mom does not look worried, most likely, her doctor told her that she is going to be fine. Anxiety is really hard to hide…
Fibroids are a very common problem, and if they cause pain or heavy bleeding, they can be shrunk by a procedure called a fibroid embolization, which is much less invasive than surgery.
But even those sites will give you info that doesn’t apply to YOU. (Or, in this case, your mom.)
In the early stages of figuring out what you’re dealing with, googling will find you enough information to cost you a LOT of sleep, most often for no good reason.
Once the doctor tells you exactly what you’re dealing with, that’s the time to find information.
