Woman who thought she was ‘just obese’ has ovarian cyst the size of a MEDICINE BALL removed
A woman in Italy had a medicine ball-sized cyst removed from her ovaries after she thought she was just obese.
The unnamed 52-year-old woman underwent a six-and-a-half-hour operation to remove the 10-pound mass that had formed on her right ovary and grown up to 16 inches in length.
Doctors blamed the late diagnosis on her being poor and having a low level of education, so she didn’t realize she needed medical attention.
The patient, a 52-year-old woman from Italy, had an 11-pound ovarian cyst that caused her abdomen to become extremely swollen. She also complained of early satiety meaning she would get full after eating very little, constipation, difficulty walking and difficulty breathing
When doctors removed the 11-pound mass, the patient lost six quarts of blood, about 25 cups or 200 ounces. She spent two months in this hospital, half of which was in intensive care, where she went into cardiac arrest
The patient had an extremely swollen abdomen and reflux, which is when stomach acid or bile comes back up through the esophagus.
She also complained of becoming full quickly, constipation, difficulty walking and difficulty breathing.
An ultrasound revealed that her abdominal cavity was completely occupied by lesions.
The cyst was 15 inches (40 centimeters) long and weighed 11 pounds (about five kilograms).
Despite the huge cyst, she had normal menstrual cycles with no hormonal effects.
CT scan of the tumor before surgery
The surgery to remove the growth was considered high risk, but researchers wrote that “surgery is mandatory in these cases.”
The doctors drained the cyst of 37 liters of dense brown fluid before performing a hysterectomy, a procedure to remove the uterus and extract the ovaries.
A plastic surgeon then reconstructed the abdominal wall, as the cyst had spread throughout that area.
The operation took about six and a half hours, during which the patient lost six liters of blood. This equals about 25 cups or 200 ounces. She received transfusions for the blood loss.
Before surgery, the patient weighed 271 pounds (123 kilograms) and had a body mass index (BMI) of 50.5, making her morbidly obese.
At the end of the procedure, her BMI was 28.3.
The patient spent approximately 30 days in intensive care during which she went into cardiac arrest and acute renal failure.
She remained in hospital for two months. After two years, “she is fully recovered and disease-free,” the researchers wrote.
They said the “delayed diagnosis in this woman was likely due to her low socioeconomic and educational attainment, which led the patient to delay medical evaluation because she assumed she was becoming obese.”
Ovarian cysts are fluid-filled sacs that develop on or in one of a woman’s two ovaries.
Usually these are harmless and most women are not aware they have them unless they show up on a scan.
Experts estimate that one in ten American women suffer from it and that about five to ten percent of women undergo surgery.
Most of these occur naturally and disappear within a few months without any treatment.
An ovarian cyst usually only causes symptoms if it splits, is very large, or blocks blood flow to the ovaries.
Symptoms, said the Mayo clinicinclude dull or sharp pelvic brain pain that comes and goes, feeling of fullness or heaviness in your abdomen, bloating, pain during sex, and heavy or painful periods.
If a cyst bursts, it can cause sharp pain in the back or lower abdomen, spotting, bloating, nausea or vomiting, fever, and dizziness.
The vast majority of ovarian cysts are noncancerous (benign), although a small number are cancerous (malignant). Cancerous cysts are more common in women who have gone through menopause.
The woman in the case study had a borderline ovarian tumor, which are masses made up of abnormal cells. They are not cancerous, but they have the potential to turn into cancer.
The researchers wrote that borderline tumors account for about 10 percent of ovarian cyst cases.
Ovulation, when a mature egg is released from the ovary so that it can move through the fallopian tubes and be fertilized, is the main cause of ovarian cysts.
Ovarian cysts can also sometimes be caused by an underlying condition, such as endometriosis.
Other risk factors include hormonal problems, pregnancy, and pelvic infection. If you have had an ovarian cyst in the past, you are more likely to get more.
The case report was published last week in the American Journal of Case Reports.