Medically, Uterine fibroids are noncancerous growths of the uterus that often appear during childbearing years. Fibroids range in size from seedlings, undetectable by the human eye ,to bulky masses that can distort and enlarge the uterus.
By Nthokozo Gudu
In extreme cases , multiple fibroids can expand the uterus so much that they reach the rib cage and can add weight.
After discovering that she had lumps in her stomach, Sarah Mutesva* had to consult the doctors and find out what was going on in her body.
I woke up one day and felt I had a lump which I never had before,I was advised to see a doctor and have a scan done. The scan revealed that I had multiple fibroids and the largest was 6cm by then. The doctor suggested that we wait and watch if there would be any changes,“she said.
Many women who have fibroids don’t have any symptoms. In those that do, symptoms can be influenced by the location, size and number of fibroids. In women who have symptoms, the most common signs and symptoms of uterine fibroids include heavy menstrual bleeding and pelvic pressure or pain.
In Sarah’s case, she never experienced any symptoms that mimicked or exhibited signs of fibroids.
“I never suspected that I have fibroids ,there are symptoms obviously like heavy bleeding ,anemia ,personally my period pain was normal so nothing ever reflected that something is wrong. My doctor suggested that we wait and the other option was to get operated. After weighing various options, i decided to wait and not be operated hoping that the fibroid would dissolve.”
This fabriods situation occurred around the same time Sarah had just been traditionally married and waiting to solemnize their vows at a white wedding.
“When I discovered that I had fibroids, it was after my traditional marriage, the lobola had been paid. Fortunately, we were not staying together yet as we were preparing for the white wedding. After sharing the news, he was truly understanding and supportive during the process. To me, he seemed to have understood everything as I had told him the risks that were associated with fibroids just as the doctor had explained to me.
“Unfortunately, Covid-19 hit and affected the wedding preparations. We later decided to postpone the wedding until Covid-19 had subsided. The plan now was to go to his homestead (kuperekwa) and start staying together. Little did I know that he had changed his mind about marrying me or staying with me because of my condition. I was of the opinion that we were on the same page.”
Sarah said her husband indicated he wanted a family and because of her fibroid, he was no longer interested as marrying her would jeopardise his chances of having children.
“The very day I was supposed to leave for his home, he had told his family that he was no longer interested. To me, he never said anything. He just blocked me everywhere, we could not discuss anything about this whole issue. He just told my family that he wanted children and with my situation I would fail to have children.
“He was convinced that I had withheld this condition of mine so that he just marries me of which to me it was a surprise. I was not given a chance to explain myself. I had to go through counseling and therapy because of the stress. Unfortunately, the fibroids got bigger too, I then eventually opted for the operation and it went well,’’ she said.
However she urged women to have consistent checkups and take precautions of anything that happens in our bodies.
“We are usually used to go to the doctor after getting sick but I would like to urge other women to have a habit of body checkups, because you can avoid some of the things before they grow inside our bodies,its good to know what is happening in our bodies. In everything I went through, the most painful part was getting divorced as for the fibroids they never pained me but after divorce that is when I had to process everything and get operated,’’ She said.
Speaking to HealthTimes, Dr Grant Murewanhema, a Gynecologist and Obstetrician explained that fibroids are non-cancerous and that they are common in women who have advanced in age.
“It is an abnormal growth of the uterine smooth muscle. The uterus is made up of muscles and fibres, so if the muscle start to multiply in one place it then results in a growth or tumor which is now the uterine fibroid,so somebody can have one uterine fibroid or multiple uterine fibroids ,the important thing to note is that they are non-cancerous and they are extremely common in our population ,not just in Zimbabwe but across the world.
“Sometimes we find them incidentally when we are not necessarily looking for them,they are sometimes discovered to not causing any problem at all so we call that an incidental finding ,they commonly occur in people who have no children or who have advanced in age,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, Buhlenkosi Tshabangu-Moyo a Researcher, Media and Gender consultant said there is need for society to be conscientised about fibroids as there were a number of myths associated with the condition.
“They are people who have fibroids but have had children, it seems like that man had no knowledge about what really are fibroids,as far he was concerned he thought she will never have children, society is not honest enough when we have conversations on the purposes of paying lobola ,we pretend that it is about love but I see it as for security and benefits.
“These things are systematic because honest truth is lobola is payed for benefits that comes with marriage,so I think its best for society to be honest enough when having conversations about marriage and lobola,’’she said.
* We have protected the identity of Sarah since she requested anonymity
