Pelvic-area cysts and tumors, even when they’re benign, can be highly disruptive. They can grow uncomfortably large, causing you pain, pressing on nerves, and making it difficult to move around and go about your day.
When you have large ovarian cysts or benign tumors, they often need to be removed. The exciting news is, you can now have them removed through minimally invasive laparoscopy right at Women’s Health Associates of Southern Nevada, Northwest in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Discover how our OB/GYNs, Anita Gondy, MD, Saovaros V. Michaels, MD, and Henry Luh, DO, use laparoscopy to diagnose and remove your benign cysts and tumors.
What are cysts and tumors?
Cysts and tumors are fluid-filled sacs and growths, respectively, that can occur on your reproductive organs. The most common kinds of cysts are ovarian cysts and dermoid cysts, both of which can grow on your ovaries.
Tumors are slow-growing masses made of tissue that can grow on your reproductive organs, including your uterus, cervix, and ovaries. The vast majority of tumors are benign, meaning they’re noncancerous.
Most cysts and tumors are too small in size for you to notice, and go away on their own. Occasionally, though, cysts and tumors continue to grow to a massive size until they’re removed, causing feelings of heaviness in your pelvic region, discomfort, and sometimes severe pain.
Understanding laparoscopy
Laparoscopy is a minimally invasive, in office surgical procedure. It can be used for two different purposes — diagnosis and treatment.
To perform a laparoscopy, our providers use tiny tools to make a few small incisions. Because these incisions are so tiny, you can have this surgery on an outpatient basis and face fewer risks, a faster recovery time, and less scarring than traditional open surgery.
Once these incisions are made and the tiny tools are inserted, your clinician views your reproductive organs using the laparoscope, which holds a tiny camera that sends detailed images. From these images, they’re able to diagnose and treat your problem.
How laparoscopy diagnoses and treats tumors and cysts
If you’re experiencing symptoms of a gynecological cyst or tumor or our clinician suspects you might have one from an examination, laparoscopic surgery can diagnose and then remove the issue. Very often, you can have your cyst or tumor diagnosed and treated during the same laparoscopy procedure.
Your laparoscopy takes place under general anesthesia at WHASN – NW. Once your clinician has made all the necessary incisions, they insert the lit laparoscope camera.
Next, they view the area where you are suspected to have a cyst or benign tumor. If the images reveal a cyst or tumor, your provider can often go in and remove it immediately.
The removal of the cyst or tumor is done with your physician guiding the tiny instruments in their movements. Once the removal is complete, the instruments and laparoscope are removed, and your tiny incisions are closed up.
After your cyst or benign tumor is removed, you’ll no longer have to deal with any symptoms. Follow our team members’ personalized aftercare instructions to make a full recovery from your minimally invasive procedure.
If you have symptoms of a large cyst or tumor or another condition that might benefit from laparoscopy, schedule an appointment by calling WHASN – NW to discuss your options or request an appointment online today.