Uterine fibroid
Read Your Scan Editorial Team·Last updated
Written from published radiology references and reviewed for plain language. Not written or signed by a physician, and not a diagnosis. How we write these pages →
In plain language
A benign growth of the muscular wall of the uterus, extremely common in women of reproductive age. The report gives size and position, which is what determines whether it matters.
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Where you'll see this
This wording turns up on Abdominal Ultrasound reports — Ultrasound imaging of the abdomen. An abdominal ultrasound shows the liver, gallbladder, bile ducts, kidneys, pancreas, spleen, and major blood vessels using sound waves. Doctors often order it for belly pain, to check the gallbladder or liver, to look into abnormal blood tests, or to follow up a known finding. It is safe, painless, and uses no radiation. The report describes what the images show; your doctor interprets it with your symptoms and other tests.
Questions worth asking your doctor
- What was the reason for this ultrasound, and did it answer that question?
- If gallstones were seen, do they need treatment or just watching?
- Is a finding like fatty liver something I can improve?
- Do any findings need a follow-up scan or a different test?
- Do the results change my current care in any way?
How common is this?
Fibroids are among the most common findings in women of reproductive age — a large proportion of women have at least one by their late forties, and most never know. They are benign growths of the muscular wall of the uterus, they can be single or many, and they range from a few millimetres to large enough to be felt. Many are discovered incidentally on a scan done for something else entirely.
When should I worry?
Having one is not, in itself, a problem: most cause no symptoms and need nothing. What determines whether a fibroid matters is size and position rather than presence — one growing into the cavity of the uterus can cause heavy bleeding out of proportion to its size, while a much larger one growing outwards may cause nothing at all. Heavy or prolonged periods, pressure on the bladder or bowel, pain, or difficulty conceiving are the things that turn a fibroid from an observation into something to address. Rapid growth, particularly after the menopause, is uncommon and is a reason for a closer look.
What happens next
For symptomless fibroids the usual answer is nothing at all, with no follow-up scan needed. Where there are symptoms, options range widely and are chosen around what is bothering you and whether you want a future pregnancy: medication for bleeding, hormonal treatments, procedures that shrink or remove individual fibroids, and surgery at the far end. Fibroids also commonly shrink after the menopause without intervention, which sometimes shapes the decision to wait.
Frequently asked questions
- Are uterine fibroids cancer?
- No. Fibroids are benign growths of muscle tissue and they do not turn into cancer. A malignant tumour of the uterine muscle exists but is rare and is a different entity, not a fibroid that has changed — which is why rapid growth, especially after the menopause, is looked at rather than assumed.
- Do fibroids affect fertility?
- Most do not. The ones that can are those distorting the cavity of the uterus, where an embryo would implant. Position matters far more than number or size here, which is why a report describing where a fibroid sits is more useful than one describing only how big it is.
- Do fibroids need to be removed?
- Only if they are causing problems. A fibroid found incidentally in someone with no symptoms is generally left alone and does not need monitoring. Treatment is driven by bleeding, pressure, pain or fertility rather than by the fibroid existing.
Other words on the same report
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