Can fibroids shrink without surgery? Herbs, diet and drugs in Nigeria, the honest answer

First: not every fibroid needs to go

Fibroids are common, and many women live with them without ever knowing. A fibroid found on a scan that causes no heavy bleeding, no pain, no pressure and no trouble getting pregnant can usually be watched, with a check and a scan from time to time. Being told you have fibroids is not, by itself, a reason for an operation or for spending money on remedies.

Treatment is worth discussing when fibroids cause heavy periods that leave you tired or anaemic, a swollen tummy, pressure on the bladder or bowel, pain, or when a gynaecologist thinks they may be affecting your chance of pregnancy.

Herbs, fibroid teas and 'flush out' products

Markets, social media and some chemists sell teas, capsules, vaginal pessaries and herbal mixtures that claim to 'melt' or 'flush out' fibroids. There is no good evidence that any of them shrink fibroids. A fibroid is a firm lump of muscle inside or on the wall of the womb: it cannot be washed out through the vagina.

Some of these products contain unknown ingredients that can harm the liver or kidneys, and vaginal products can cause infection. The bigger harm is delay: women spend months, sometimes years, on remedies while the fibroids grow and the blood level falls, and arrive for surgery more anaemic and with a harder operation ahead.

Diet and weight

Eating well matters, but no particular food shrinks fibroids. What diet can do is help your blood. If heavy periods are draining your iron, iron-rich food helps you cope and prepares you for any treatment later.

• Beans, lean red meat, liver, fish such as sardines and titus, and eggs
• Dark green vegetables: ugu, efo, waterleaf, bitter leaf
• Something with vitamin C at the same meal, such as orange or pawpaw, to help absorb iron
• Tea and coffee between meals rather than with them, because they reduce iron absorption

Hospital medicines: what they really do

Medicines fall into two groups. The first group controls the bleeding without changing the fibroid: tranexamic acid taken during the period, anti-inflammatory painkillers such as mefenamic acid, some hormonal pills, and a hormone-releasing coil where the shape of the womb allows it. These can make life much easier, especially while you decide.

The second group lowers your hormones so the fibroids shrink for a while. These injections or tablets bring on a temporary menopause-like state, with hot flushes and thinning of the bones if used for long, so they are usually given for a few months before surgery to shrink the fibroids and let your blood level recover. When they stop, the fibroids usually grow back. Only a gynaecologist should prescribe them.

When surgery is the sensible choice

Surgery is usually advised when fibroids cause symptoms that medicine has not controlled, when they are large, when they press on other organs, or when a fibroid sits inside the cavity of the womb and may be affecting pregnancy. A myomectomy removes the fibroids and keeps the womb. A hysterectomy removes the womb and is usually for women who have finished having children. Some fibroids inside the cavity can be removed through a hysteroscopy, with no cut on the tummy.

Go to a hospital the same day if you are bleeding so heavily that you soak a pad in an hour or less, feel faint or breathless, or have sudden severe tummy pain.

Common questions