Removal of uterine fibroids does not necessarily require removal of the cervix

I believe everyone knows the importance of the uterus to female friends. If there is a problem with the uterus of a female friend, it will not only cause harm to the body but also easily affect fertility. Therefore, we recommend that female friends must protect their uterus in daily life. The uterus is prone to uterine fibroids. We know that uterine fibroids are very harmful. We can use surgery to remove uterine fibroids, but the removal of uterine fibroids does not necessarily require the removal of the cervix. Let’s take a look at the detailed introduction below.

Many patients with uterine fibroids will choose to have surgery to remove the fibroids. In more serious cases, the entire uterus needs to be removed. So does removing the uterus mean that the cervix must also be removed? There is a cervix at the lower end of the uterus and a cervical opening in the middle. There are many ligaments, blood vessels, nerves, fallopian tubes, etc. around the cervix. Only 5% of cases have cervical myomas. However, in the early years, myoma surgery often removed the cervix and uterus together. The reason is to avoid the development of cervical stump cancer in the future, that is, to avoid cervical cancer on the remaining cervix after surgery. Stump cancer is a headache because it is very difficult to perform surgery or radiotherapy. Once patients hear that leaving the cervix intact may lead to the development of inverted cancer, they generally choose to have the cervix removed. In fact, the incidence of stump cancer is about one percent to one thousandth of the residual cervix. If we multiply it by the incidence rate of cervical cancer, then the incidence rate of cervical stump cancer among women is one in ten thousand.

To have the cervix of tens of thousands of people removed just for one person with stump cancer is an excessive "waste" and unreasonable. To prevent the occurrence of stump cancer, first, we should adhere to the established routine of performing cervical smears to check for cancer cells before surgery; second, we should insist on performing cervical smears once two years after surgery; and third, in cases of severe cervical inflammation, the cervix should not be retained.

If the situation allows for removal of the uterine body and retention of the cervix, this has many advantages: the operation is much simpler than total hysterectomy, and the chances of bleeding, trauma, and infection are much smaller. There are no wounds in the vagina after the operation, the vaginal length is not reduced, cervical canal secretions are still there, and the quality of sexual life is better than total hysterectomy. The ligaments suspending the cervix are intact, and the possibility of cervicovaginal prolapse is reduced. The operation is small in scope and less in interference, and recovery is quick after the operation.

In the above article, we introduced the importance of the uterus to female friends. We recommend that female friends should protect their uterus well in normal times. Once the uterus has any disease, they should seek timely treatment. If uterine fibroids occur, they should be surgically removed. However, removal of uterine fibroids does not necessarily require removal of the cervix.