Herbal Remedies Blog

Ovarian cysts affect an estimated 10 percent of women in their child bearing years, and doctors aren’t sure why some get these blister-like sacs on the ovaries and others do not. The growths are usually more of a nuisance than a reason to panic: Most ovarian cysts disappear on their own. Though the very work “cyst” conjures up a more terrifying “c” word – cancer – fewer than 5 percent of ovarian cysts in young women prove malignant.

Still, because cysts can also cause medical emergencies if they rupture or, worse, twist the ovary, they should never be ignored. Persistent cysts that can’t be treated with medication may require surgery, which can impair fertility. Here, the facts on ovarian cysts every woman should know – and what to expect if you have one.

How to spot one

You could have an ovarian cyst and not even know it until your gynecologist discovers the symptom-free growth during a routine pelvic exam. Some women do experience discomfort – often a sense of fullness or pressure in the abdomen – and visible swelling, as if they’ve put on few pounds. Other red flags include delayed, irregular, or extremely painful periods, as well as pain during sex. Report any of these symptoms to your doctor right away.

Once she has diagnosed a cyst, your doctor may simply ask you to come back in six to eight weeks. Many ovarian cysts shrink without treatment after one to three menstrual cycles. When the cyst is first diagnosed or if it persists at a later visit, you may also undergo an ultrasound, which provides your doctor with a good look at the cyst’s size and shape and lets her determine whether it’s fluid-filled, partially solid, or marked by septations – worrisome divisions associated with cancer.

Cysts specifics

Some cysts occur from the natural process of ovulation. Every month, a woman’s ovary produces a small cyst-like structure called a follicle, which ruptures to release an egg. After ovulation, the empty follicle eventually dissolves. Sometimes, though, it doesn’t break up and instead forms a benign, fluid-filled growth, called a functional cyst. This kind of cyst usually goes away on its own. If your doctor detects a lump on your ovary, she’ll want to rule out the following abnormal growths, which are more likely to cause health problems and need to be removed:

• Dermoid cysts are usually non-cancerous but grow from other cells in the ovary that may contain tissue, teeth, hair, and bone (strange but true). Believed to be congenital growths that, over time, become large enough to be detected, these tumors are most common in young women.
• Cystadenomas, which develop from cells on the outer surface of the ovary, are the most worrisome of ovarian cysts. The two types of cystadenomas – serous (fluid-filled) aand mucinous (mucus-filled) – account for about 25 percent of benign ovarian growths. But serous cystadenomas are the most likely of ovarian cysts to be cancerous.
• Endometriomas are a form of endometriosis, a condition that develops when endometrial tissue, which is normally shed each month during menstruation, migrates outside the uterus. Endometriosis is usually linked to infertility. Because they contain dark, reddish-brown blood, endometriomas are sometimes called chocolate cysts.

Treating the cysts

Some fluid-filled abnormal cysts can look exactly like a functional cyst, and the only way to tell the difference is to wait and see if the cyst goes away. In the meantime, your doctor may order blood tests to measure the activity of your ovary’s lining cells; elevated protein levels are associated with common kinds of ovarian cancer.

Once your doctor has a good sense of the cyst’s characteristics, he’ll decide whether it needs treatment. If you have a normal functional cyst that doesn’t go away after a couple of cycles, your doctor may prescribe birth-control pills. The pill will, in a sense, put the ovary to sleep. With less stimulation to the ovary, functional follicles will often regress.

Though ovarian cancer is rare among women of reproductive age, any growth that seems suspicious should come out. The same applies if the mass is causing discomfort or is very large. An enlarged ovary with a cystic mass on it is more likely to undergo torsion, which blocks blood flow. This is rare, but it causes intense pain and usually requires surgery to remove the entire ovary.

To prevent twisting or rupturing of a cyst, some doctors routinely remove all but functional cysts. Other physicians prefer to wait, noting that any kind of abdominal surgery can cause fertility-impairing scar tissue.

When surgery is called for, it is usually done with a laparoscope, a long, thin instrument inserted into the abdomen and used to drain the cyst, check for infection, or stop bleeding. The minimally invasive technique is easy to recover from.

If you’ve had an ovarian cyst, rest assured that you’re at no greater risk for developing ovarian cancer than other women. Your first cyst may not be your last, though. To prevent a recurrence – or to avoid getting functional cysts in the first place – consider taking birth-control pills if you’re not trying to get pregnant. The pill provides some protection against ovarian cancer too.

Finally, make a point of seeing your gynecologist for regular checkups; cysts that are caught early are less likely to cause problems.

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