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New Minimally Invasive Approach Offers Women Relief for Fibroids
2 min. read
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For nearly two decades, Magdalena “Maggie” Pena has suffered with fibroids – abnormal, noncancerous growths on her uterus. The 47-year-old bookkeeper’s pain became so intense in the past few years that she couldn’t sleep through the night.
(Watch now: Maggie Pena talks about how a new procedure now available at Baptist Health West Kendall Baptist Hospital helped shrink her fibroids while preserving her uterus. Video by Eduardo Morales.)
“It felt like there was a huge ball in my back and any pain medication I took did not work,” she says. When she consulted physicians, their treatment was to remove her uterus — an option that Maggie did not want to consider. “It felt hopeless.”
Uterine fibroids affect up to 80 percent of women, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Many women who have fibroids do not experience symptoms but for some, like Ms. Pena, living with fibroids can be debilitating. Symptoms include lower back pain, heavy menstrual bleeding, anemia, painful periods, feelings of fullness in the pelvic area and enlargement of the lower abdomen.
Ms. Pena found relief thanks to the Acessa procedure performed by West Kendall Baptist Hospital obstetrician-gynecologist Peter Khamvongsa, M.D. After she sought help at the Emergency Department because of heavy bleeding and severe anemia, Dr. Khamvongsa offered her a minimally invasive alternative to shrink her fibroids while preserving her uterus and the healthy tissue around the growths. West Kendall Baptist Hospital is the only facility in South Florida that provides the Acessa procedure.
With this technology, Dr. Khamvongsa makes small incisions in the patient’s abdomen to deliver controlled heat directly into a fibroid, shrinking it and changing the consistency of the growth. The transformation can be compared to the difference between a baseball and a marshmallow. The decrease in size and feel results in a dramatic improvement of symptoms.
What makes the Acessa procedure so unique is that it uses ultrasound technology to provide a real-time view of the uterus, guiding physicians so they can identify and treat all the fibroids – even those within the uterine walls – with greater precision. It is the only fibroid treatment that is minimally invasive and does not involve an incision in the uterus.
“It is amazing,” Dr. Khamvongsa explains. “With the ultrasound probe directly into the uterus, we can really visualize the fibroids and the anatomy. This allows us to target the heat to exactly where it needs to go without damaging surrounding tissue. We also can find other fibroids to treat, relieving the symptoms that our patients experience. We are giving women an option, so they don’t have to live with pain or have surgery to remove their uterus.”
For Ms. Pena, the treatment was life changing. “I had the procedure early in the morning and left the hospital later that day. I went to sleep and literally had no pain,” she says. “I can’t remember that ever happening before.”
Today, she is enjoying everyday activities without any discomfort. “The results exceeded my expectations. I am so grateful.”
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