Dealing With Ovarian Cyst
Written by Munirah Yaqoub
Caveat: This article doesn’t serve as expert medical advice. It is important to consult your doctor when you notice something is off with your body.
Ovaries are a part of every woman’s reproductive system. Their functions include housing and protecting the egg cells required for reproduction, releasing the egg cells during each ovulation cycle, and producing reproductive hormones including estrogen, progesterone, relaxin, and inhibin, which aid in the regulation of a woman’s menstrual cycle. So, yes, ovaries are crucial, especially for women who intend to start families of their own.
An ovarian cyst is a fluid-filled or semi-solid sac that grows in the ovaries. It is very common, especially in pregnant women and women of reproductive age. Ovarian cysts are usually painless and harmless and often resolve on their own. When they grow bigger or don’t go away on their own, it’s a sign of an underlying problem.
Categories
Ovarian cysts are categorized into two — Simple/Functional Cysts and Complex/Pathological Cysts.
A functional cyst forms with your menstrual cycle. It develops when the ovaries fail to release an egg (follicular cyst) or when a follicle in the ovary continues to grow after an egg has been released (corpus luteum cyst). Usually, it has no symptoms, is non-cancerous and tends to resolve on its own after a few menstrual cycles.
Pathological cysts on the other hand are caused by abnormal cell growth and not at all related to the menstrual cycle. They can manifest either before or after menopause (where an ovarian cyst is discovered after menopause, it may be a symptom of ovarian cancer). These cysts form from the cells used to create the eggs (dermoid cysts) or the cells covering the outer part of the ovary (cystadenomas). They may also develop as a result of endometriosis, a condition in which the endometrial tissue grows outside the uterine lining (endometriomas). Endometriomas are sometimes called chocolate cysts since the blood found in the cysts resembles chocolate (intriguing, right?).
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a condition in which the ovaries generate multiple small cysts. Although most pathological cysts are benign, a small percentage of them are malignant and are often surgically removed.
On what causes ovarian cysts, ovulation is the answer for functional cysts. During ovulation, the ovaries form cyst-like structures called follicles, which release the egg. When the egg is not released or the follicle keeps growing after the egg is released, it becomes a functional cyst.
The root cause of pathological cysts on the other hand, depends on the type of cyst; endometrioma is caused by endometriosis; the exact cause of PCOS is unknown but it involves hormone imbalance, and cancerous cysts form when mutated ovarian cells begin to grow and reproduce. Hormone changes, pregnancy, endometriosis, a previous case of ovarian cysts and a severe pelvic infection that spreads to the ovaries all enhance one’s risk of developing ovarian cysts.
If you’re anything like me, you’re probably exhausted by the numerous things that can go wrong with a woman’s reproductive health; it honestly shouldn’t be this hard to be a woman, should it? I hear you babes, but, it is what it is! We just have to find a way to survive, which can be done by early detection and treatment.
Caveat: This article doesn’t serve as expert medical advice. It is important to consult your doctor when you notice something is off with your body.
How do you know you have ovarian cysts?
Most small, simple ovarian cysts usually have no symptoms so they take longer to detect. However, symptoms of ovarian cysts include lower abdominal pain (which can be dull or sharp), bloating or pressure in the lower abdomen, nausea, vomiting, frequent urination (this is due to the cyst being large enough to press on your bladder), a sudden and severe pain (if the cyst ruptures), painful periods, pain during sex, painful urination or bowel movements, fatigue, diarrhea, constipation, fertility problems, irregular periods, heavier or lighter periods, pain in lower back or thighs, fever, rapid breathing, dizziness, bleeding between periods, amongst others.
Cysts can sometimes cause unusual complications, such as ovarian torsion (the cysts grow large, causing the ovary to move and twist. This is very painful), rupture (the cyst breaks open, causing severe pain and bleeding), an infected ovarian cyst (which develops in response to pelvic infection, forming an abscess. If the abscess bursts, the bacteria can spread through the body), and rarely, the development of a cyst from benign to malignant. Feel exhausted yet?
In diagnosing ovarian cysts, your doctor will first rule out pregnancy. If the pregnancy test returns as positive, you may have a corpus luteum cyst which will usually resolve on its own. Other modes of diagnosis include a pelvic ultrasound (to confirm the cyst, pinpoint its location and determine its type), a transvaginal scan (as an alternative to the ultrasound; helps to also reveal other materials which may not be picked up by the ultrasound), a laparoscopy (a slim instrument with a light and camera is inserted to the belly through a small cut to see the ovaries and remove any cysts), a CA 125 blood test (to test for cancer antigen 125 (CA 125) in the blood — these cells are often higher in women with ovarian cancer, uterine fibroids, endometriosis and pelvic inflammatory disease), a hormone profile blood test (to test for hormone imbalance), CT scan and an MRI.
Treatment Options
Treatment options depends on your age, whether you are pre or post-menopause, appearance and size of the cyst, and the accompanying symptoms. As stated earlier, most functional cysts resolve on their own and thus, do not require treatment. This is called “Watchful Waiting” and it is used to determine whether the cysts disappear after one or two menstrual cycles or remain and grow bigger or cause other symptoms; pain relievers will usually be prescribed to help with the pain. Where the cyst remains or grows bigger, other treatment methods are adopted. These are:
- Prescription of birth control pills: This won’t remove the cyst but it will prevent future cysts by preventing ovulation.
- Surgery — Large Cysts or cysts which don’t go away on their own resolve, usually require surgery. Surgery is also done when you are near or past menopause as the cysts are more likely to be cancerous. Depending on your case, the surgeon may remove only the cyst or the entire ovary. The various kinds of surgeries are:
- Laparoscopy — For smaller cysts and it involves making a tiny incision on the stomach and inserting a tiny instrument with a light and a camera to view the ovaries and remove any cyst found.
- Laparotomy — For larger cysts or potentially cancerous cysts, and it involves making a larger incision on the stomach to remove the cyst. The cyst, once removed, is tested for cancer. If it is cancerous, the doctor may need to remove one or both ovaries, the uterus and some surrounding tissues. This removal will trigger early menopause, meaning you will not be able to conceive.
The recovery period after surgery differs for people. Stomach pain around the incision site is expected. After surgery, it may take as long as 12 weeks to fully recover and resume normal activities. At times, an infection may occur which you must communicate to your doctor immediately. Symptoms of an infection include heavy bleeding, severe pain or swelling in the abdomen, fever, dark or smelly vaginal discharge.
Your treatment may differ if you have a condition causing ovarian cysts such as endometriosis or PCOS. Endometriosis may be treated with painkillers, hormone medication, and/or surgery to remove or destroy areas of endometriosis tissue. PCOS may be treated with birth control pills to regulate periods, hormones to increase fertility and hair removal procedures.
It’s normal to be scared after reading to this point, especially if you’re experiencing these symptoms or have recently been diagnosed with an ovarian cyst because it can be frightening. However, it’s also important to speak to your gynecologist (P.S: If you don’t have a gynecologist at this point, you should totally get one. They’re absolutely crucial) about your symptoms and possible risks so you know what you’re in for. Like I said, most ovarian cysts will resolve on their own and the risk of cancer is quite slim when compared to benign cases (with 13–21% of cases turning out cancerous).
Key things to note with Ovarian Cyst:
- Ovarian cysts are either fluid-filled, blood-filled, solid or semi-solid.
- Most women will have ovarian cysts at least once in their lifetime
- Ovarian cysts can be functional or pathological, cancerous or benign.
- Most functional cysts resolve on their own without the need for treatment. On the other hand, pathological cysts require treatment, depending on their nature.
- Ovarian cysts cannot be prevented as they typically occur on their own usually as a result of hormone imbalance.
Caveat: This article doesn’t serve as expert medical advice. It is important to consult your doctor when you notice something is off with your body.
Munirah Yaqoub is a law graduate who is passionate about women and children’s rights. You can connect with her on Instagram and Twitter.
Edited by Oluwatobiloba Ganiyu
Female, Editor, Medical student, ambivert, goofball, Christian. Always interested in learning new things. Connect with Oluwatobiloba on Instagram.
Published by Akinsipe Temitope
Temitope is a young storyteller who thinks all stories are worth telling. She loves to inspire people to do what they love and follow their passions, tell their stories, and live in the present moment. Connect with Temitope on Instagram, and Twitter.
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