Ovarian Cysts

**Muffy** · July 2nd, 2009, 03:12 PM

I had cysts on my ovaries just over a year ago (just before i fell preg)
I had them removed and everything has been fine since then.
The last couple of days i have been getting those noticable pains in that area and it feels alot like the pain i had when i did have the cysts...
What are my chances of havig them again??
Could it have been possible for them to grow while i was preg? or after?

**Willow** · July 2nd, 2009, 03:31 PM

Hate to be the bearer of bad news but yes - to both.

You are more likely to develop ovarian cysts if you have had them in the past.

It is also possible to develop them during or after prg, depending on what type they are.

Mine developed post prg while I was b'feeding and grew to 8.5cm in 6 months.

I would definitely go and get it checked out. I had a friend who ignored the niggling pain (she'd had them before too) and by the time she was rushed to hospital they found an 18cm cyst

Hope it turns out to be nothing

**Muffy** · July 2nd, 2009, 03:35 PM

oh bugger, my last ones were only about 5-6 cm when they found them... hope these ones are like that or smaller!!
thanks i will get myself off to the doctor tomorrow!

**AliBaby** · July 2nd, 2009, 03:41 PM

Hope everything is okay hun

**Willow** · July 2nd, 2009, 03:42 PM

Please don't worry too much, the only reason mine was left to grow to that size was because I was prg again at the time and they didn't want to do surgery till 20+ weeks (if at all). We ended up losing our baby at 12 wks and I had the surgery about a month later. I think it was around 4cm when they first found it??

I hate telling people my experience but I always think it's better to get checked out because mine did such a lot of damage, it's just not worth the risk. I hope I haven't scared you!

Good on you for getting it checked out, here's hoping you get the all clear! Let us know how you go

**Doodlebug** · July 2nd, 2009, 04:01 PM

As the other girls said.... sorry but the can come back!!!

I've had approx 6 operations to remove them and now have that much bloody scar tissue inside one of my recent ops was to clean up all the scar tissue!!!

My largest was the size of a grapefruit with the fluid amount of 3/4 of a coke can.

Before I was ttc I was on a continuos pill to stop the ovulating, hence the cysts forming and growing (mine are blood filled).

I would go get it checked, hopefully they can just monitor it to keep it under check.

I made the mistake of ignoring it once and ended up in emergency, having a full blown argument with the surgeon on call that I had a cyst and was not my appendix like he thought! He only drained it and didn't take the skin....I ended up with another cyst 2 months later AND the bugger took my appendix as well!!!

Sorry.... went off on a tangent. Hope all goes well and it's under control!

**Salsa** · July 2nd, 2009, 04:13 PM

willow, what sort of damage can they do?

**Willow** · July 2nd, 2009, 05:16 PM

Salsa - it depends on the type of cyst. I think my experience was worse because the cyst wasn't removed when they first found it (they procrastinated about it hoping it would just resolve itself as some of them do and by the time they realised it was serious, I was prg again) By the time it was removed it had been there 6 months. There were a few trips to an oncologist to rule out ovarian cancer which was very frightening. It was an endometrioma in the end - so basically a ball of endometriosis. I had never had endo before, nor have I since and it was not found anywhere else in my pelvis. Just one of those random things.

So I had it removed by laproscopic surgery in a small hospital (bad move) and it turned out to be a messy surgery. Most of my left ovary had to be removed (which I wasn't told until months later) I was in theatre for almost 4 hours and lost a lot of blood. Recovery was long and painful. The opposite of what everyone had told me would happen.

We started ttc again a few months later and after 6 months without success went back to see the dr who'd performed the surgery and we ended up trying clomid for 6 months without success. After that I knew something was wrong so went and saw a FS who wanted to do another surgery straight away. I was devastated but the second surgery was much better. Unforutnately, the scarring and adhesions from the first surgery had pretty much removed all function on my left side and had blocked my left tube. So no tube, no ovary. We had a chance of falling prg naturally from my right side but the chances weren't great so we went straight to IVF.

We had our son in Nov 07 and much to our surprise this baby was naturally conceived 12 months later. So there was a happy ending

**Willow** · July 2nd, 2009, 05:20 PM

Double post

**Doodlebug** · July 2nd, 2009, 09:16 PM

Oh Willow you poor thing!

I can totally sympathise with you, my right ovary and tube are the same as your left, damaged by adhesions and scar tissue.

Congratulations on your suprise though!!!

**BrightSparkles** · July 2nd, 2009, 10:23 PM

Yep...i had them before pg and after as well.

Hope it works out for you. xx

**~Saram~** · July 2nd, 2009, 10:46 PM

I get ovarian cysts quite often but they usually resolve themselves after a few months. I usually don;t go until after about 4mths. I have never heard of getting them removed, my last one was over 10cm but they just kept me on monthly scans until it disappeared. But I have heard they can be dangerous if they burst or they can contort the ovary/tube. I would go and get it checked if you are worried.

I find mine are usually quite while breastfeeding but flare up again afterwards like now :-)

**Willow** · July 3rd, 2009, 08:24 AM

Sara - sounds like yours are what they call 'functioning' cysts which usually occur around ovulation (which might explain why you don't have issues while you're b'feeding) and eventually just resolve themselves.

Sorry to hijack your thread RR!!

**~Saram~** · July 3rd, 2009, 08:46 AM

Thanks Willow, not sure as I have had AF back since DD was 11wks but have only gotten the cysts back in the past 3 mths after I weaned her - same thing happened with DS and I jsut went on the pill as I was scared of the contorting thing. I have only heard of them as corpus luteum cysts. The only one I have had that they worried about was the one before I fell pg with DS as it messed up my cycles getting AF anywhere between every 7 days to 56 days

**Muffy** · July 4th, 2009, 03:11 PM

Oh willow, thank you so much for sharing you story with us xx

also its ok dont stress about the hijack i love people getting information out there for everyone to read!!!

Thanks so much for all you concern and advice, i went to the doctors and hes pretty sure they have come back so i am going for an ultra sound next wednesday!!