Page 25 - Waterfall Issue 8 2021
P. 25

inTERVEnTionAL




        RADioLoGy







































        Interventional radiology is a specialist discipline, which uses imaging

        guidance for the diagnosis and treatment of various pathologies,

        including tumours, using minimally-invasive surgical procedures.
                                            o        ne of the minimally-invasive   than 3cm in diameter that cause

                                                     interventional radiology
                                                                                severe menstrual bleeding, which
                                                     treatments offered at
                                                                                of life, include myomectomy (surgical
                                                     Netcare Sunninghill Hospital   seriously impacts a woman’s quality
                                            is uterine fibroid embolization (uFE)   removal), hysterectomy and uFE.
                                            for symptomatic uterine fibroids
                                            causing severe menstrual bleeding   The benefits of uFE are the following:
                                            and menstrual pain. A uterine fibroid   •  It is a minimally-invasive procedure
                                            (Leiomyoma) is a benign tumour of    and can be offered to patients who
                                            the uterus consisting of muscle and   want to avoid surgery or retain
                                            connective tissue from the uterine   their uterus. During uFE, the blood
                                            wall. The noncancerous tumour can    flow to all fibroids is occluded;
                                            grow on the outside of the uterus    thus, the small fibroids that could
                                            (subserosal fibroid), in the muscle of the   account for a high recurrence rate
                 By Dr Dewald Bester,       uterus (intramural fibroid) or into the   are also addressed versus when
               Interventional Radiologist,    uterine cavity (submucosal fibroid).  surgery is performed where only
              Netcare Sunninghill Hospital                                       the macroscopically visible and
                                            Treatment options for fibroids larger   reachable fibroids are removed.


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