The fact that ovarian cysts are a common occurrence in women
is no secret. However, there are times when a few women develop cysts that
continually increase in size. Such cysts sometimes grow to such an extent that
they mimic a pregnancy. The following are 5 of such extreme incidences.
1. A 70lb Cyst made Lorna Fulton think she was pregnant
Lorna was a 44 year old woman who had only two concerns: to
lose weight and to get pregnant. To lose weight, she signed up for a dieting
program and took it seriously. As for the pregnancy, she decided to let nature
takes its own course.
However, despite her dedicated effort towards weight loss,
nothing came of it. In fact, what she observed was that her waistline was
increasing, rather than reducing. This increase in the waistline, and the
distended abdomen continued to a point where she got convinced that she was
pregnant. She then decided to visit a doctor, and what she found out was both
disappointing and shocking.
It turned out that what she thought was a baby, was actually
a large cyst containing a massive 32 liters of fluid. This was both shocking
and worrying, and so was the news that a
hysterectomy was the only way to get rid of the danger that the ovarian cysts
posed. She later mustered the courage to have the procedure done at Glasgow’s
Royal Infirmary, a procedure that had a large effect - both in her life, and
her body. Here are her before and after pictures:
Sources: DailyMail , GrowingYourBaby
2. The woman with the 11-inch, 40 kg ovarian cyst
The case of this 57 year old Brazilian woman was documented
in Journal of Medical Case reports, and was equally extreme. For her, it wasn’t
just the distended stomach that was a problem. Her ovarian cysts were so huge,
that they sometimes made it hard to breath.
With the large cysts occupying a large part of her body,
other organs didn’t have enough space to properly function. He stomach contents
were squished, and her uterus had been displaced from its normal place. The
size of the cyst had also forced it to push against the diaphragm, and hence
the breathing problems.
What made her condition even more scary was the fact that
her cyst contained traces of cancerous cells. This forced her doctors to remove
her uterus, fallopian tubes and lymph nodes. She thereafter underwent chemotherapy.
Source : LiveScience
3. The curious case of Sherilyn Hurdle
The world got to know of Sherilyn Hurdle when her
unfortunate situation was aired in the news. She had extremely large cysts, they
made her look 9 months pregnant, in her body that were making her unable to
work, she had no way of paying for the surgical removal of the cysts, and no hospital
was willing to offer her help.
With the help of well-wishers, and a generous doctor, she
was able to have the large cysts removed. Luckily, the surgery was successful
and she was able to live without the devastating symptoms of the ovarian cyst.
4. The 17-year old with giant cysts and PCOS
This is a case that was documented by Dr. Robert Wild, Dr.
Greg Dupuis and Doctor Nishit Patel.
The first uncommon thing about this case is the fact that the
girl was merely a teenager. She also did not lead an unhealthy lifestyle. She
didn’t smoke, had no drinking problem, and neither did she have a family
history of people with reproductive system complications.
Although the teenager’s cyst had grown to 14 cm, it was
still growing. The doctors had to perform further tests which revealed another
small hemorrhagic cyst in the left ovary and a 30 cm cystic lesion within her
pelvis.
The size of the ovarian cyst caused it to push against
adjacent organs and thus causing unbearable symptoms. She experienced pain on the
left side of her abdomen and lower back pains that also affected her right
thigh. And the symptoms got worse every time she moved. The only good news for
her was that the large ovarian cyst lacked any signs of malignancy, which meant
that a simple surgery could get rid of the cysts without any risk of cancer.
Source: Consultant360
5. The Man Who Found Out He Was A Woman – A Cyst Helped
This case is not shocking because of the size of the cyst,
but rather because of the existence of the cysts themselves. The “man” had
lived for over 66 years without knowing that she was actually not a man. As
reported by both CBS and the Huffington Post, it is the symptoms of an ovarian
cyst, in one of her ovaries, that helped him to make this discovery.
The doctors had to surgically remove her ovaries, both
fallopian tubes, and her uterus, in addition to the mass, so as to ease the effects
of the cysts. And when they later disclosed the condition to the patient, he
decided to continue to perceive himself as a man.
"The patient decided to continue perceiving himself as
having a male gender with the possible need of testosterone replacement,"
wrote the report's authors, led by Dr. KF Lee, a physician in the department of
medicine and geriatrics at Kwong Wah Hospital, Yaumatei, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
If you are interested in knowing more about cysts, downloading Carol’s Book is a good place to start.
