Thickened lining in uterus.

[MorvernBlack]

Just had an ultrasound and the lining of my womb is thicker than it should be (didn't get measurements).
I'm 54, still having periods (not withdrawal bleeds as they come at the wrong time).
I am on Evorel Sequi 50, but for a year I was on the wrong dosage of HRT ( not enough progesterone).
The scan was a day after my period finished, so technically when it should have been thinnest.
They have requested a gynae review.
I'm really, really worried about them taking me off HRT. There's a lot of stress going on in my life atm and pre HRT my brain fog was so bad I seriously thought I had Alzheimers and shocking joint pain.
I had a thickened lining on scans in the past and it's never been a worry before.

Why did you have a scan in the first place? It's not 'routine'.
It's a shame that you weren't given your results. you ought to be given information.

TBH there is LOT of misunderstanding over thickness (I've had loads of scans as I am on a non-licensed HRT regime with longer cycles) but the scans are done privately.

There is no point saying you have a thick lining when you are not post menopause and on HRT.

Even the 'limit' of a 5mm lining (I was told by an expert who specialises in scans for cancer) is not fixed as it depends on what the lining looks like.

I'd say you don't need to worry.
They won't take you off HRT.

GP has just told me to stop the HRT until I've had a gynae review, which should happen within 2wks. I'm gutted.

The ultrasound was for pelvic pain, I have been having period type low level pain for a while. I have a history of polyps, cysts and fibroids. The scan was a private one.

That advice is not usually given by specialists. It's usually carry on with HRT until the scan info and then re-assess.

If you paid for the scan, you have a right to know your results. It's your data and you should ask for it.

Did a gynae not do the scan? I'm confused why your GP is making this call about your HRT and you need to see a gynae because many private scans are done by specialist gynaes or gynae radiologists who tell the GP what's required next, not the other way round.

Scan was done by a consultant (general) radiologist in an NHS hospital. I wasn't refused my results, they just said it takes a couple of days to review them and write the report, which will go to the GP (and a copy to me) and they will recommend an NHS gynaecology appointment.

By coincidence I had a phone appointment booked with my GP this morning. Talked to her, she said she recommends coming off the HRT until I see gynaecology. Although she thinks the thickened lining is probably down to the previously wrongly prescribed dosage. (She was the one who picked up on the wrongly prescribed dosage).

I 'd query why you weren't told the measurements at the time, which is what usually happens with private appts.

If it was done privately, the drs tend to tell you before the info gets to the GP.
Out of interest, how did you get a private appt in an NHS setting. Did you choose your consultant who did the scan?

Also, the consultant who did it should advise the GP so unless this is what has happened (and is in the letter) then the GP isn't really well-placed to make that decision to stop.

TBH if it is hyperplasia, then stopping HRT for 2 weeks won't make much difference either way and if you are using sequential then it's surely better to carry on and work through the progestogen patches while you wait?

I'm sure that it's nothing and if it was hyperplasia, the treatment is either more Norethisterone or a Mirena coil.

Fingers crossed for you that it's nothing too worrying.

Not wanting to out my location, but I live somewhere, where getting to the nearest private hospital is a considerable trek (not England). But we can get some private treatment at the far nearer NHS hospital.
In all honesty I wasn't expecting a consultant radiologist, I was paying (or rather the insurance was) to avoid the waiting list, not for a consultant. The last time I had a private ultrasound was in a BMI hospital and I didn't get a consultant then.

Ah, okay! That makes it clearer. You could still ask for the results, and push your GP along or the hospital so you get the letter.

I've had scans for a long time and been told that the top limit for post menopausal women on sequential HRT is 10mm. For women who are still having periods, the lining can go up to 16mm and be completely normal.

As you aren't post meno you are going to have thickening from your own estrogen plus the HRT. TBH I think your GP ought to have checked with a gynae consultant over whether to stop your HRT now or not.

It may all turn out to be nothing abnormal.