worried about fibroid

[marshpig]

Had 20-week scan yesterday and was told I have a fibroid the size of an orange (!) which is pushing baby upwards and outwards. This explains why am already HUGE but am worried it might get bigger! anyone have similar experience?

Hi Marshpig
Not exactly the same experience but I did have a fibroid with ds and they were worried it was going to prevent me from giving birth naturally, was low down near the cervix and about the size of a plum at the time. As it turned out by 37 weeks it had gone, or at least they couldn't find it. Fibroids are funny things, they seem to come and go and pregnancy hormones seem to do funny things to em. if they're worried they'll scan you again but an orange compared to how huge you and the baby will be by 40 weeks is really nothing! try not to worry too much so long as bubs is ok and growing ok

Marshpig I am 31 weeks and I have one too, about the size of an orange on my lower left side, I have 2 dcs and it was there during both pregnancies and now with this one too. It has never been a problem, one obstetrician commented that its position may have obstructed the two natural deliveries I tried to have, but other consultants have said that is not necessarily the case.

It seems to shrink/disappear when I am not pregnant and the consultants never seem to be worried about it. It doesn't seem to get bigger, just stays the same size. HTH

Had my 12 week scan last week and found a 10cm fibroid - more of a small pear than an orange! I've been referred to a consultant, although the midwife was fairly relaxed about it. I'm really for hoping for a VBAC and so I'm nervous about anything which might appear a 'complication'.

MarshPig - Have you been told what to expect next i.e extra scans?

Thanks Pheebe, Cameroonmama and TaenaBlue... this was my first posting so am no longer a virgin..great to get replies from cyberspace..and know am not alone!
Back to matter in hand..my midwife also seemed very relaxed about the "orange" and am not being scanned again until 36 weeks. If still there then will be referred to consultant for pleasant internal exam to see if obstucting baby's way out..could mean c-section. Wil be v unchuffed if this is the caee as am really hoping for a home birth this time (already have 2 dds with no fibroid issues!)
Just wondering though if fibroid does disperse/shrink/disappear, where does it go.. does anything come out that you would notice?! Sorry, I know its teatime....

I am currently just 6 weeks pregnant and have been bleeding for almost three. A first scan showed that everything looks fine but also a grape-sized fibroid. I am wondering if the fribroid could cause the bleeding (I have read they can do so, at least while not pregnant). Did you experience any bleeding during the first trimester?

Hi Glimmer
Sorry to hear about your bleeding ..must be worrying..I didn't have any during the first trimester but maybe my orange was just a pip then as nothing showed up on my 12 week nuchal scan! At least your scan shows all else OK...will be thinking of you and your grape..let me know how it goes!

Glimmer - I've also read that fibroids can cause light bleeding in pregnancy see this link

What does your midwife think?

Anyway, just checked the notes from my scan and it says that I have a 'complex multi cystic structure' - is the same as a fibroid? Sorry to be so totally thick! Either way I'm worried that it's this big at twelve weeks - just how big do these things grow?

Hi Teanablue -- thanks for the link! I know that there might 100000 other reason why I am bleeding but at least it's a possibility. (I rather knew where it coming from).

I am trying to bypass midwife and GP until I have my nuchal scan, but am scheduled privately for another scan in two weeks. Story is long and this is not the place to tell it, but they are basically incompetent, only scared me to death in my last preganancy ("well, you could have an ectopic, but we won't look into this unless you are bleeding heavily...") which ended in misscarriage and endless complications ("well, this is very unlikely, therefore we con't check you out for it" -- when I had a cervical stenosis). Sorry for the rant, ...

Hi Im nearly 26 weeks and have been told that Ive got a 7cm fibroid sitting right at the "exit" point .
2 Midwifes have both said more than likely CS, the consultant said not to worry - they'll have another look at 36 weeks and then decide - but added that if its still there the CS cut will have to be higher up
he said natures a funny thing and things can change, so its a case of waiting and seeing.
Hasnt caused me any bleeding though although horrible "bouncy" sensation when LO wacks it!

I too have a monster fibroid - 15x14x10cm at the 20 week scan 3 weeks ago. Mine sits on top of my uterus on a stalk and so I have two bumps - one baby, one fibroid.

I knew about mine before I got pregnant, but it has grown a lot (5cm) to this point, probably because of the pregnancy hormones. I saw a consultant at about 16 weeks who said she thought it wouldn't grow much more but as Pheebe said, fibroids are rather odd and unpredictable. I just hope mine shrinks after pregnancy, otherwise I'll probably have to have an op to take it out. The main thing to look out for is something called 'red degeneration' (sounds a bit sci-fi, doesn't it?) which is when the fibroid outgrows its blood supply and dies, causing really intense pain (likened to appendicitis, apparently). This would obviously be vile but doesn't cause the baby any harm and can be treated with painkillers, even morphine in hospital if necessary. Red Degeneration happens mainly between 20 and 28 weeks, and only in 10% of cases.

Because I've known about mine for a few years now I've found out quite a bit about them. There's a really useful book which talks about all aspects of fibroids, including pregnancy.

There is a good Yahoo fibroid group as well which is worth signing up for.

Wow - this is a long message!

The only plus side with the CS is that the MW said they MIGHT be able to remove the fibroid at the same time! (would be good)