The Drs TV: Carrying Baby & Fibroid Tumor
A woman shared with The Doctors that she felt like she had a bowling ball in her gut. She said she did a lot of research on her own and determined she had a fibroid tumor, but when she went to the doctor, she was told she was pregnant. The doctor thought she was 5 months pregnant and had no tumor, but in reality she was only 5 weeks pregnant and had a large fibroid that was going to share the space with her baby.
The Doctors talked to a woman who carried both a baby and a fibroid tumor for nine months. (Lana K / Shutterstock.com)
She said people would tell her she was having twins because of how big her stomach was. She also said that her baby would kick and punch at the tumor “like it was his own little soccer ball.” She said the pregnancy was smooth until the end when they found out that the baby had flipped around and was breach, which was a problem since he couldn’t turn back around because of the tumor. She was told she would have to have a C-section. During the C-section the nurse peered into her stomach and told her the tumor was so huge she needed to name it. They ended up naming it Fred.
She had to heal for six months from the C-section before they could remove the tumor, and after they did they brought it to her in a bucket, and she described it as a rock. She is now the mother of a 2-year-old and a “dearly departed tumor named Fred.”
The Doctors: Fibroid Tumors + Treatments
Dr. Drew Ordon said millions of women have fibroids, but having to deal with it during a pregnancy makes it particularly difficult. The woman, named Ashlee, explained that her doctor was quick to assure her that the tumor wouldn’t be dangerous to her son’s health, but it did get bigger throughout the pregnancy. She was told it was a non-cancerous uterine fibroid and it wasn’t going to be detrimental to her son’s health.
Dr. Rachael Ross explained that it was a tumor of the smooth tissue of the uterus and basically what happens is fluctuations in hormones can cause it to grow bigger and then shrink back down again. She said it usually happens between the ages of 35 and 45, and African-American women have a three-fold risk of develping fibroids at some point in their lives. She said it’s associated with people who eat red meats and even ham, as well as people not getting a lot of exercise.
Dr. Ross said you have a 10-25% increased risk of developing another fibroid if you’ve already had one, but if you do what’s necessary, such as changing your diet, you can decrease you risk. Dr. Ross said the best part about them is that they’re not cancerous and they’re almost always manageable. Dr. Ordon said there is now the use of radio frequency ablation that can be used to treat fibroids, which is something that Ashlee may want to look into down the line.
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