Miracle baby after radical new procedure for uterine fibroids

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDFeb 3 2011

Dr Ananya Mandal, MD

Amy Cordle is the first woman in Australia to become a mother after undergoing a radical new procedure. On Australia Day, the 31-year-old Albert Park woman’s little “miracle” arrived when daughter Neroli was born.

She had an inoperable tumour in her uterus - uterine fibroid, a non-cancerous tumour. Uterine fibroids are benign tumors found in about one-third of women of reproductive age. About 30 per cent experience symptoms such as pain and bleeding and depending on the size and location of the fibroids, they can cause infertility. It was the size of a tennis ball, and was in a tricky spot so doctors could not remove it. She was told that she could become a mother only after trying a new procedure.

The Royal Women’s Hospital had introduced magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound technology, which would be her only hope of becoming pregnant. It is the only public hospital in Australia to offer the non-invasive procedure. This MRI scanner pinpoints the fibroid and then ultrasound waves are used to heat and destroy it, without harming surrounding tissue. In November 2009 Ms Cordle became one of the first to have the treatment, lying in an MRI machine, ultrasound waves pulsed on to the tumour. Each painful pulse lasted 20 to 30 seconds, and she had six hours of treatment, she said. Four months later a scan revealed her fibroid had shrunk by half, and two months later Ms Cordle, a scientist at Melbourne University, was pregnant.

During Ms Cordle’s pregnancy the tumor grew back but it was smaller, she said. Royal Women's director of radiology Andrew Dobrotwir said more than 100 women had used the technology, which had so far resulted in the birth of two healthy babies. One other Melbourne woman, who had children, gave birth at the end of last year, Dr Dobrotwir said. He added that Ms Cordle could have another baby if she wished after undergoing therapy again.

He explained, “Usually we would treat fibroids with surgery, which has risks and there is no guarantee it will improve fertility, so this is a great alternative where the patient does not need an anaesthetic, incisions, any sort of surgery. The patients walk in and walk out and we improve their fertility in the process.” With the technology costing about $4.5 million, Dr Dobrotwir said he was lobbying Medicare to provide a rebate for the procedure so more public hospitals could adopt the technology. He said soaring demand had prompted him to offer the procedure privately in his Melbourne clinic for about $5,000.