One fallopian tube

Clarity16 · 2023-08-19T15:19:10+00:00

Hi, On Wednesday I had to have my left fallopian tube removed due to an ectopic pregnancy. I'm home now and physically recovering well, but mentally and emotionally very much all over the place. The consultant said I should be able to try again after one cycle and I am desperate to try as soon as possible tbh. But I'm also absolutely terrified about the impact on my fertility and what if it doesn't happen for me now?! Also terrified about it happening again and ending up losing my other tube. Has anybody got any success stories about conceiving after losing a fallopian tube? Thank you

Ttcmumma · 19/08/2023 17:26

My friend has two 'accident' children with only one tube left! Didn't affect her ability to have kids at all. She was on the pill one of those times too 😅 if you're fertile, it won't stop you getting pregnant. She's never had issues with the remaining tube either x

MammaWeasel · 19/08/2023 17:30

I had a fallopian tube removed because of ectopic and went on to become pregnant three times afterwards. Good luck 👍🏻

Original poster

Clarity16 · 19/08/2023 17:47

Thank you so much. That's so reassuring to hear.

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Chica1990 · 19/08/2023 19:20

I tried for a year and like you had my left tube removed due to ectopic. 3 months later to the day I had a positive pregnancy test and he's almost 2 years old now. A scan later on showed the egg came from my left ovary so it found it's way to the right tube which is why its supposed to just decrease your chances by 15-20%, rather than the 50% I assumed!

good luck and don't give up

MoonlightDreamer · 19/08/2023 19:31

Unfortunately I can't offer much other than support but if it's any help , my consultant also said the same thing, that you only need one tube and it shouldn't affect chances too much.
I was on the list to have my left fallopian removed due to a blockage but I conceived the following month , it turned out to be a chemical but clearly you do only need one.

gravitytester · 19/08/2023 20:10

The remaining fallopian tube will move around to collect the egg from whichever ovary is ovulating! This absolutely blew my mind when I read it (think on natural cycles?)

Original poster

Clarity16 · 19/08/2023 21:12

Thank you all. I've been very tearful this evening and this at least let's me feel a bit hopeful going forwards.

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candycrush789 · 19/08/2023 22:30

Im sorry about your loss. My sister had an ectopic and had to get a tube removed, she got pregnant 3 or 4 cycles later. After I had my 1st child (nearly 8 years ago!) I fell pregnant and it was a ruptured ectopic, had to get right tube removed and my left is scarred, they said i have Ashermans syndrome and would find it hard to fall pregnant. I got pregnant again with my 2nd and again with my 3rd and I’m here cradling my 7 week old baby boy 🩵 I’ve had a mmc in between 2nd and 3rd but that’s not linked at all! Xx

Dentaldrama · 19/08/2023 22:38

I had a tube removed at 18. I needed IVF but that was due to make fertility issues. I don't know what would have happened if that hadn't been a factor. But I've always had regular periods and no other obvious issues.

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 19/08/2023 22:40

Had my right tube removed at 25 following an eptopic, told my other tube was very scarred and I prob won’t have kids, and to not leave it any later to try.
Tried at 30 and 33 and both my daughters were conceived first cycle try.

thunderandsunshine01 · 19/08/2023 22:50

I went on to have 3 more kids after one tube being removed. They actually confirmed my first pregnancy after ectopic came from the ovary with no tube attached as the fallopian tube moves across to collect the egg - on an early scan they can apparently see where the egg left from as leaves a mark in the ovary or something like that. The only thing they said to me regarding fertility was that statistically you have a higher chance of a 2nd ectopic, so you need to make sure if you’re TTC that once you get your positive you book in for your NHS early scan (which you will now qualify for) to check location. If they catch another ectopic early enough they can treat without tube removal, but harder if it goes longer undetected.

marmaladeandpeanutbutter · 19/08/2023 23:08

I read an interview with a gynaecologist who saw a fallopian tube cross a body to pick up an egg from the other ovary on a scan. Astonishing.

fml666 · 19/08/2023 23:13

I conceived with one blocked fallopian tube and the other one was completely twisted. Should have been impossible but I conceived naturally at the age of 41.

Original poster

Clarity16 · 20/08/2023 08:17

Thank you all again. This would have been my third child and I'm already conscious of the age gap widening more than I'd have liked, so once I feel healed enough I think we'll just go for it and cross our fingers.

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Lengokengo · 20/08/2023 08:20

My mother had an eptopic pregnancy in the 70s, one fallopian tube removed. After that, she had me! I always post on eptopic pregnancy threads, because I am living proof that you can have a healthy baby afterwards!

Throwawy · 20/08/2023 10:13

@Clarity16 I'm in pretty much same position as you. I have one child, then had an ectopic. I had tube removed 6 weeks ago, dr said I could try as soon as I had my period after surgery - which was a few days later but decided to give it a month for healing.
Did they give any idea if what may have caused yours? The first consultant I saw said the cause was that I was riddled with endometriosis, but then the surgeon said that it all looked healthy but they removed some large endometriomas from my left ovary. Got a letter saying now that they are functional cysts not endometriomas so now I'm wondering if I had it at all.

From what I understand 30% of the time even if you have 2 tubes, the other tube will catch the egg, so your fertility really isn't that decreased. They say losing a tube only decreases it by 10-15%.
I have the added complication that the ovary that had the cysts hasn't functioned in years, so I'm just hoping stats will be in my favour.

Original poster

Clarity16 · 20/08/2023 10:49

Throwawy · 20/08/2023 10:13

@Clarity16 I'm in pretty much same position as you. I have one child, then had an ectopic. I had tube removed 6 weeks ago, dr said I could try as soon as I had my period after surgery - which was a few days later but decided to give it a month for healing.
Did they give any idea if what may have caused yours? The first consultant I saw said the cause was that I was riddled with endometriosis, but then the surgeon said that it all looked healthy but they removed some large endometriomas from my left ovary. Got a letter saying now that they are functional cysts not endometriomas so now I'm wondering if I had it at all.

From what I understand 30% of the time even if you have 2 tubes, the other tube will catch the egg, so your fertility really isn't that decreased. They say losing a tube only decreases it by 10-15%.
I have the added complication that the ovary that had the cysts hasn't functioned in years, so I'm just hoping stats will be in my favour.

Hi,
Sorry to hear you're in the same boat.
I don't know what caused it. No issues in previous pregnancies or problems with periods. When I was having the scan the sonographer said he could see some signs of adenomyosis, but it was just a brief mention and I've had no symptoms. They are also sending the tissue off for testing and will let me know if anything abnormal is flagged up.
I also drank quite a lot of alcohol at a wedding a couple of days after probably conception and I can't help but wonder if that could have affected things? But then again plenty of people drink before they know they're pregnant without issues.
I think just really, really unlucky seems to be the main thing!

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Throwawy · 20/08/2023 19:47

@Clarity16 from what I know alcohol doesn't cause it. I wondered because I had a terrible stomach bug if that caused it but I was told by the surgeon that it's known to cause miscarriages but not ectopic. I also drank a fair bit during the pregnancy as I didn't know I was pregnant until I was 6/7 weeks. I had a normal period though it was a week early that I just put down to the stomach bug. But because of that I decided to track the next cycle with opk's which were always peak, still took me a week to decide to test as I figured I can't be pregnant if I've had my period. Turns out that "period" was likely the egg implanting in my fallopian tube!

I'm somewhat relieved that it's now looking like a case of bad luck rather than an actual cause as hopefully that means it's less likely to happen again.