Ameerah Simmons says she is grateful for uterine fibroid procedure that relieved severe plain.
— Courtesy of Ameerah Simmons
Emory Healthcare physicians are changing the lives of patients by offering a new procedure for women suffering from symptoms caused by uterine fibroids that cause severe pain.
When 47-year-old Ameerah Simmons began to speak about her experience with fibroids, a crack in her voice solidified her emotions. “I just didn’t know what was wrong,” says Simmons.
Weathering storms is nothing new for Simmons, who is a Hurricane Katrina survivor. She and her family left New Orleans and settled in Atlanta in 2003. She began working as a gate agent at an airport and says, eventually, life began going well.
“We started from nothing, I mean not even a toothbrush, we were just alive,” says Simmons.
However, several years ago, a flood of unexpected and unexplained cramps, fatigue, migraines, heavy bleeding and clotting during her menstrual cycle began to overwhelm her. The debilitating pain affected personal relationships and forced her to miss several days of work each month. After a doctor’s visit, a pelvic exam and an ultrasound she learned she suffered from symptoms caused by fibroids.
“Fibroids are the most common benign, meaning non-cancerous, tumors of the uterus. They grow from a single muscle cell and they are hard, small to large tumors and some of the symptoms can be minimal,” says Cherie Hill, MD, an obstetrician and gynecologist with Emory Healthcare, and assistant professor in the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at Emory. “However, other fibroids can cause heavy, painful periods.”
Hill goes on to say, “Some of the fibroids can get so large they push on parts of the abdomen like the bladder — causing pressure and often increasing urination. They can also push on reproductive organs, which can cause pain during intercourse.”
Cherie Hill, MD, obstetrician and gynecologist with Emory Healthcare
The new method is an alternative to a hysterectomy — a surgical procedure used to remove a woman’s uterus. Hill has performed more than 10 laparoscopic uterine fibroid radiofrequency ablations thus far, including Simmons’ procedure last February.
“During the procedure, we make two small incisions in the abdomen while the patient is asleep,” says Hill. “Then we use a skinny camera to place a small probe directly into the fibroid where controlled heat is applied. The heat causes the fibroid to shrink about 45% in volume and changes the consistency, softening the fibroid to help eliminate symptoms."
Hill says this new approach is a great option for patients who have fibroids that are causing pain and heavy bleeding but want to keep their uterus intact. However, the procedure is not recommended for women who want to become pregnant because there is limited testing for this population.
Following the procedure, most patients see a decrease in heavy bleeding. Within three to six months, much of the pain is alleviated as well. Hill says recovery from the procedure takes a week or two, compared to six to eight weeks following a traditional myomectomy — a surgery where a much larger incision is made in the abdomen to remove fibroids.
Simmons says her ultrasound revealed she had three fibroids: two the size of a grape and one the size of a plum, as well as a cyst on her ovary. Now, the woman who weathered many storms is experiencing brighter, healthier, pain-free days.
“The changes happened immediately. I tried everything and nothing worked before this surgery,” says Simmons. “I let Dr. Hill lead, and it was the best decision I ever made. I wish I were the me now, back then.”
Learn more about office-based procedures and access women’s health services at Emory Healthcare.