Unwelcome Uterine Guests

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Introduction
Paula: Hello, and welcome to another episode of Chatting with the Experts where I speak with phenomenal women from Africa, from the Caribbean, and in the diaspora. These women share my mission, which is to educate, empower, and encourage women globally. Our topic today is very interesting, and it’s all about Unwelcome Uterine Guests.
My guest, who will join me in a second, says, “Do you know what uterine fibroids are?” And she says they are the unwelcome uterine guests, and that although they are non-malignant tumors, they can create havoc to a woman’s quality of life when they are symptomatic So she is a seasoned healthcare leader.
She’s an advanced practice nurse and a doctor of health administration with over 20 years of experience in clinical care, healthcare [00:01:00] leadership, advocacy, and organizational wellness.
Her expertise includes women’s health, healthcare leadership, advocacy, conflict resolution, and system level wellness with special recognition for her work around uterine fibroids. And with that, I welcome Dr. Cheryl Okoli to Chatting with the Experts.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Thank you very much. Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.
Paula: Absolutely. You say that uterine fibroids are unwelcome guests Of course, that’s obvious Mm. But that’s you know, that’s one of the things you specialize in. Tell me more about that. What are fibroids?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes, very good question.
What Are Uterine Fibroids?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So I don’t know if any of you remember a movie called Gremlins from years ago.
These were very naughty creatures that would [00:02:00] run around people’s homes, and they were very mischievous and very naughty. I liken uterine fibroids to those. So what are they? They are non-malignant tumors. So think of them as growths in the uterus of a woman. So right there, uterine fibroids are only found in women because only women have uteruses.
Think of them as non-malignant, so they’re non-cancerous tumors, growths in your uterus, and they can be of different sizes. They could be as small as a pea. So if you think of a green pea that you eat. They could be microscopic, size of a pea, to as big as a watermelon in some women. Yeah. And they just take habitation.
They’re squatters, if you will, in a woman’s uterus. So the normal uterus shouldn’t have any growths like that. But sometimes, due to different factors that the research is still not very clear on why they occur, but one of the [00:03:00] consensus is that it has to do with estrogen dominance, which means basically there’s lots of estrogen, which is one of the female hormones, circulating the women’s uterus, and that leads to the growth of uterine fibroids.
Yeah.
Paula: So-
Dr Cheryl Okoli: But the key is they’re not cancerous
Paula: Okay, so that’s reassuring because lots of women, many times they’re worried. I mean, “Is this cancerous? Am I gonna die? What’s gonna happen?”
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Mm-hmm. You know? Mm-hmm.
Paula: And so that leads me to my next question. Who is susceptible to that, a- and why?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yeah. Excellent question.
So who is susceptible? So to begin with,
Who Is Susceptible?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: uterine fibroids can occur in any woman, young lady, who’s of childbearing age. Mm. That’s the key. Any woman of childbearing age is susceptible, regardless of your age, your ethnic background or your race, as long as you’re of childbearing age. And what do I mean by that?
You’ve had a menarche. Menarche means your first menstruation. That is the [00:04:00] mark a woman has reached childbearing age is when she has her menstruation, right? The first menstruation is called the menarche, okay? So any woman that’s reached menarche is susceptible. Now, however, we have found based on the research that women that are chocolate hue, that I like to say, or darker or lighter, but have more melanin than normal, are more susceptible.
And the question is why is that? Again, research is studying much more about this, but one thing we’ve noticed is that especially, I’ll use the word black, as much as I love to say the word chocolate hue, I’ll use the word black. Mm-hmm. Black women are more susceptible than all the other races. As an example, by the age of 30, let’s see, by the age of 35 years, 60% of African American women will have uterine fibroids.
And by the age of fif- Wow. Sorry, by age of 35, [00:05:00] 60% would have had it. By the age of 50, about 80%.
Paula: Wow.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Now, if we were to compare that with Caucasians, the statistics is a little bit different. So by age 35 for Caucasians, only 40% will have uterine fibroids.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: And for them, by age 50 years old, 70%.
So compare that. Those of African descent, 60% by 35. Wow. 80% by 50%. And the only, the other thing too is that it’s more severe, in terms of the symptoms are more severe in those of African origin.
Paula: Wow.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: When they do have symptomatic uterine fibroids. So let’s backtrack a bit. I mentioned any woman of childbearing age is susceptible.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: You might have fibroids, but not be symptomatic.
Paula: Okay.
Symptoms of Fibroids
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So sometimes people have what’s called an incidental [00:06:00] finding, which means, let’s say, perchance they had an ultrasound for, let’s say, pelvic pain, or they’re trying to get pregnant or, and then they find the fibroids. So that’s called an incidental finding, meaning it wasn’t, they weren’t experiencing any symptoms.
They didn’t have an issue. They just happened to be going for something else, and then they found fibroids. That’s called incidental finding, okay? So if it’s an incidental finding, usually- They may not be symptomatic. So what do I mean by symptomatic? Some people that have symptoms, usually the biggest sign, unbeknownst to them, is the heavy bleeding.
So that’s called menorrhagia. So they might think, “Oh. Oh, I just, I’m just a heavy bleeder. My mom has always been a heavy bleeders, hence I’m a heavy bleeder,” not knowing that it could be fibroids causing that. Okay? And when I say heavy bleeder, so let’s use tampons and sanitary pads, for instance, during your menstruation.
[00:07:00] So for some, we know that the first few days, or at least the first day, is usually light. The second or third day are usually heavy. So if you’re using like, up to like, six overnight pads per day, that’s a heavy bleeding. That’s not normal, as an example. If you notice that you’re beginning to plan your life around your periods, you’re always worried, “Am I gonna stain my clothes?
Am I gonna soil my clothes?” That’s a big sign that, okay, you’re bleeding so much that you’re worried you’re gonna stain your clothes. Now, I mentioned one of the biggest symptoms are the heavy bleeding. There could be the excessive pelvic pain. Now, don’t get me wrong, most women during their menstrual periods have cramps, but there are some that have debilitating pain to the point that they’re in fetal position. They can’t [00:08:00] function.
Mm-hmm. Now, when you’re in that position that you’re in such pain that in fetal position you have to miss work, you really do need to start investigating to find out what the cause is. So the gold standard is usually an ultrasound. Some use an MRI to detect if someone has uterine fibroids, and sometimes they might find out they might have endometriosis, okay?
So sometimes endometriosis and fibroids go hand-in-hand, but sometimes they do not. Fibroids can be on their owns, okay? So that’s one thing I know the general public wonder, “Oh my goodness,” so I’m confused, endometriosis with fibroids, which are two different conditions. But uterine fibroids, again, when you’re having symptoms like heavy bleeding, excessive pain, you begin to notice bulk.
What I mean by bulk, pressure in your lower abdomen. You begin to notice you might look a little bit pregnant. People are like, “Are you pregnant? Oh, you’ve gained weight. Look at your stomach.” And you know you haven’t gained weight, as in you’re eating [00:09:00] normally, but then your stomach has begin to protrude.
These are telltale signs something a little bit untoward is going on. It’s not just your regular bloating, okay? Because if they’re big, depending on their sizes, it can add to the pounds when you step on that weighing scale, okay? So your question, who is susceptible, just to recap, any woman of childbearing age.
In terms of risk factors, the research shows that people that have more melanin than usual, so aka those of African descents. And also, believe it or not, you may not be just of African descent, you might just have more melanin, so you could say, like, South Asian. And also the research is showing less vitamin D, people who have less vitamin D are more susceptible.
Now, here’s the double whammy. You and I, and those that are darker than us, as much as vitamin D when we are out in the sun, the sun rays, we [00:10:00] are always like, “Oh, we need some rays. You need those vitamin D from the sun to protect us from skin cancer.”
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: But our darker skin acts as an armor to prevent us from absorbing, and that is why people of African region, black people, have low vitamin D.
And that’s why they need to supplement dietarily or with supplements.
Paula: Good.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Let me-
Paula: Good, Good thing, because, you know, we tend to think, well, because we have darker skin you know, we’re protected from um, the, the, the, the sun rays, the- Skin cancer.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Mm-hmm …
Paula: the, the harmful sun rays, and we never think about but that’s also preventing us from absorbing the vitamin D.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes.
Paula: Yes. Good point. Okay. Yes. Sorry, I interrupted you there.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: No, that’s okay. No, absolutely. You’re right. So I wanna put this in perspective [00:11:00] too. So in South Asia, the Middle East for instance, the Muslim world, where they wear abayas. Mm-hmm. What’s that effect? They’re not absorbing any vitamin D. Mm. It’s not because of their skin, but because they’re having this clothing-
Paula: They’re covered …
Dr Cheryl Okoli: that prevents them, so they’re deplete in vitamin D too. They have to supplement.
Paula: Mm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Okay? So, uh, yeah, a study was done. They’re like, “Why are these people so low in vitamin D?” And it was because of this protective clothing they’re wearing, okay?
So yeah, I’ll pause there for now.
Paula: Good.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Mm-hmm.
Paula: So, Okay, women, uh, with more melanin are more susceptible to, to the fibroids. I’m looking at my notes, that’s why I’m looking to the side.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes, that’s okay.
Paula: Okay. And also because it’s been noticed that, um, they also are deficient in vitamin D. So a quick question.
So would women, [00:12:00] like in the Middle East, also, has studies shown that they also are more susceptible to fibroids, or not necessarily? Or is it just, it just the, the, the correlation-
Dr Cheryl Okoli: The low vitamin- …
Paula: with the vitamin D. That’s it.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Good question. I have not seen any research about that correlation, but definitely the low vitamin D part because of the protective uh, clothing that’s preventing them from…
Yeah, but that’s a very good question. I have not looked into that yet.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: But good question. Good question. Okay. And another thing, though, on that note, another thing, piece of research is there’s a gene called the fumarate hydratase. It’s an enzyme that helps with the uptake of oxygen and all of that.
They find that women who are, have a mutation in this gene are also susceptible to uterine fibroids as well. One study showed that as well.
Paula: Yeah. Can you spell this, this gene?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Fumarate. Sure. Fumarate, [00:13:00] F-U-M-A-R-A-T-E.
Paula: Fumarate.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Hydratase, H-Y-D-R-A-T-A-S-E gene.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So fumarate hydratase gene. It’s an enzyme.
Yeah, so a mutation in this gene, yes.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So yeah, but more, the biggest one that we can focus on and prevent is the vitamin D depletion-
Paula: Wow …
Dr Cheryl Okoli: that we can tackle at least. Genes you can’t really manipulate per se, right? But at least vitamin D, the nutrition deficiency we can tackle. Yes.
Paula: So now being that studies or research is showing that, you know, um, we of African descent have a higher percentage of, of daughters and pass that gene, um, these are some things that need to be, the younger generation need to be aware of, you know, in terms of like having probably from [00:14:00] an early age, our daughters or young girls need to be, um, start taking vitamin D very early and I guess probably screening for this, um, gene mutation so that, you know, they’ll be aware- Hmm
that this is a possibility.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Early Screening Proposal
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Absolutely. Now let’s take that back. I like your way of thinking, and I agree 100%. I actually came up with a proposal for early screening, not so much for the gene, but to screen for uterine fibroids earlier. Mm-hmm. Because if it’s somebody of childbearing age, so we’re talking about young ones as little as 12, 13, 14, right?
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Because again, like I said, they might, they might be experiencing a heavy bleeding, and heavy bleeding leads to anemia, iron deficiency-
Paula: Right. Right …
Dr Cheryl Okoli: which would affect their energy levels, fatigue, and untreated anemia can lead to heart issues. So that, so one of the signs of heart issues would be [00:15:00] tachycardia, so your heart is racing.
Mm-hmm. They might be like, “Oh, Mom, I don’t know what’s going on, but my heart is beating so fast.” If it’s come to that, that shows how anemic they are. Mm-hmm. Okay? Because iron, hemoglobin helps carry oxygen circulated to all of our tissues and cells of the body, okay? So some of the symptoms, I actually have an acronym to help people remember the symptoms of uterine
The F.I.B.R.O.I.D.S. Acronym
Dr Cheryl Okoli: fibroids.
So let’s talk about just fibroids and the acronym. F, fatigue.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: I, iron deficiency. B, bleeding excessively. R, I have that for restrooms visit because that’s not the case for everyone, but depending on the size of the fibroids and where they’re located, if it’s bigger, it can press on your bladder. And what would that do?
Mm-hmm. Make you go to the restrooms more often- Restrooms. Mm-hmm … to avoid, right? And then O, now I have overweight, but it doesn’t necessarily mean if you have fibroids you’re overweight, but that’s just [00:16:00] a clue to remember, like I mentioned earlier, you might be increasing in weight. Yeah. And then research does show that women with higher BMI- tend to have uterine fibroids.
There’s a correlation there as well. So that’s why one of the interventions is like try and lose some weight, and of course with other dietary control as well. And then I, infertility issues. So going back to what I said, sometimes it could be an incidental finding, and that’s how they’re diagnosed with fibroids.
So some women might be go- let’s say they might be trying to be pregnant and they’re like, “I can’t get pregnant. I’m not fertile.” And they have an ultrasound, and lo and behold, they find the fibroids. Mm-hmm. So that’s called an incidental finding. They were trying to get pregnant, and yes. And that also happens because one thing people need to…
Sorry, let me finish the acronym here and then I’ll teach a little bit more. And then D, depression. I’m not saying everyone that has uterine fibroids will have depression, but that could be some symptoms. [00:17:00] Because again, think about it. If you have to plan your life all around your menstrual days because you’re a heavy bleeder, you’re like, “Okay, am I gonna soil my clothes?
Should I have an, um, should I have an extra set of clothing?” Mm-hmm. “I’m missing work because I am so, number one, either tired or I’m in so much pain that I have to miss some days in work.” For women that are married, it might lead to, um, intimate issues with their partner. You know, so all this can cause some depressive symptoms.
And then the S, I always add S for fibroids, stressors. The stressors that come with all of what I just mentioned. And the research shows, again, as compared to the African Americans as compared to the Caucasians, their quality of life is decreased in all aspects I mentioned. In terms of sick time, it was increased.
There was a study, a fibroid growth study and a few other studies that were done in terms of, um- work absenteeism, they have higher absenteeism, not like going to work or absent from [00:18:00] work and not feeling very well.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Soiling of clothing, and the list goes on. There’s so much. Like, I can actually… Yes, let me…
Yeah, so there’s a study by Fortin et al. Fortin is the group of one of the researchers. They showed missed work was increased in African Americans, decreased quality of life with family and friends, with their significant other. They were self-conscious about their weight. There was a physical impact on their life.
They were tired, depression, and the soiling part I mentioned about their clothing. Yeah? Wow. So yeah, so that’s what I meant by if they are symptomatic, they can create havoc on a woman’s quality of life, and that’s why they’re so unwelcome, unwelcome touring guests. Like those gremlins I mentioned in the movie, running around people’s house creating havoc, uterine fibroids.
But one thing I need to mention, yes, I just remembered, that’s really crucial,
Fibroid Positions & Fertility
Dr Cheryl Okoli: the position of the fibroids matter. Think of, let’s [00:19:00] think of this analogy. Imagine blowing up a balloon, and this balloon has two linings. It’s like a double-layer balloon. Let’s put it that way. You blow it up and then turn it upside down.
So the part you’ll be blowing, think of that as a vagina, and the top portion represents the uterus, okay? Mm-hmm. Now, fibroids can grow on top of the uterus, so aka on top of that balloon. Those are called subserosal fibroids. They can grow inside that double layer, so think of that, the intramuscular layer.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: And they could be inside the cavity, okay? The reason why I mentioned that is the position of where the fibroids are matter and determines the treatment one seeks and receives, and also determines the ability to have children or not. So here’s a test question for you to make sure you’re getting this.
Paula: All right.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: If a woman is trying to have a [00:20:00] baby, and she has fibroids in all three layers I mentioned, which layer will be more risky to affect her fertility? Which position?
Paula: I’m as- I’m assuming if it’s inside the, um, the uterus itself.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Inside the uterus itself, particularly the endometrial layer-
Paula: Yeah.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Because that’s where the egg would implant.
Paula: Plant, yeah.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes, so it’d be competing with the implantation of the egg.
Paula: That’s what-
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes …
Paula: I assume.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Exactly. Mm-hmm. But nevertheless, even if it’s inside the layer, the multiple layers, that could grow bigger and still shift, again, competing with the baby when the baby is, or the zygote, let’s say the zygote is implanted.
It could be competing for space as well. Mm-hmm. So the least rather risky is the subserosal on top.
Paula: Yes.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: It’s for fertility. Mm-hmm. But still it might still cause her-
Paula: Pain or
Dr Cheryl Okoli: discomfort …
Paula: discomfort. And discomfort, yes. [00:21:00]
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Okay. Yes, and again, they just don’t sit like that. Some of them sit on the stem.
It’s called pedunculated. So imagine, like, a leaf on a tree. You know how s- leaves have stems attached to a branch?
Paula: Yes.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So fibroids could have a, quote-unquote, “branch” attached to them. Mm-hmm. And those are ca- that’s called pedunculated.
Paula: Oh,
Dr Cheryl Okoli: is that right? And when the pain comes, when it twists-
Paula: Mm-hmm …
Dr Cheryl Okoli: that would cause pain to the woman, and sometimes fibroids outgrow their blood supply.
And when something outgrows its blood supply, it starts dying. That causes necrosis, and that causes pain.
Paula: Right.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So do you see why I said they’re so unwelcome? Yeah.
Paula: Wow. Mm-hmm. Ooh. As I told you, time… This is so interesting. We’ve already spoke for 20 minutes, but I’m hearing about all these symptoms and what can happen, but there’s hope, right?
There are treatments. There is
Dr Cheryl Okoli: hope, yes.
Paula: There is hope.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Light at the end of the tunnel.
Paula: Yes. Thank you, Jesus. Okay.
Treatment Options
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes.
Paula: So what are [00:22:00] the treatments? Because-
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Excellent question …
Paula: ooh, I’m already feeling the pain just thinking of so many women I know. And, you know, I’ve also had a guest come on and say one other thing that possibly contributes to a lot of women of African descent having fibroids is the things we do with our hair.
Our hair tends to be different from all other races, and we put a lot of chemicals in our hair, on our scalp- Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm … that’s being absorbed into our endocrine system- Mm-hmm … and that is interfering with so many things. So that’s, but that’s a topic for another, another show.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: No, but that’s a good point.
So, But that’s a good point. Let me tie it into your answer of what’s the treatment, what’s the hope. So l- let’s start with what you just mentioned. So I mentioned earlier what the consensus as to the etiology, as it’s, as to what causes fibroids, is the estrogen [00:23:00] dominance. Okay? Mm-hmm. So you could have estrogen from the external environment coming to your body, so those are called xeno, as in X-E-N-O, xenoestrogens, and that’s where the whole chemicals things comes in, the antibiotics in our, and hormones in our meat and food.
These are all xenoestrogens, foreign estrogens coming into our body. And, yes, if you’re already susceptible and have extra estrogen circulating your body and you add this extra foreign estrogens, talk about the dominance which is like a bump more or less going up. I’m exaggerating a little bit, but that just contributes to the influx, right?
So that’s the correlation between the chemicals, the hormones in our food, and how it’s like, stop doing those things, especially if you’re susceptible. When I say susceptible, family history, that’s what I mean by susceptible. Mm-hmm. African descent, because not all African, people of African [00:24:00] descent have fibroids.
Absolutely. But there usually is a family history, right? Mm-hmm. And, again, right? So now treatments, let’s start with medical now. So with medical treatment, believe it or not, there’s a technique, or rather an intervention called watch and wait, which literally means watch the fibroids. Are they growing bigger?
Are they interfering to her quality of life? So remember how I said some people might have fibroids and may not know? They’re not symptomatic. It’s not affecting their quality of life. Mm-hmm. So that’s the watch and wait.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: And the watch and wait has to do with are they increasing in size, how much pain, how is it affecting the quality of life of the woman?
So that means you can just let them be and watch and wait. Mm-hmm. There’s also medications that, like for example Lupron. So what that would do, they would shrink the fibroids, but the side effects is it propels the woman into early menopause because it decreases the estrogen.
Paula: And that’s called what? Lupron?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Lupron. Okay. L-U-P-R-O-N. [00:25:00]
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Gonadotropin antagonist kinda drug family. Yes. So and the medical treatments, medications, again, pain control, right? Medications to treat the pain, iron supplements to treat anemia. That’s kinda like the medical approach. And then you have the surgical approach.
So surgery, for me, when I’m educating and consulting with women, my first question to them, if they’re of childbearing age, “Do you wanna have children?” Because that answer determines, think of an algorithm. If you wanna have kids, it determines the surgical approach you might wanna take. There’s some surgical approach are more invasive than others.
Mm-hmm. The least invasive is some … One of the least invasive procedures is called a UAE, not United Arab Emirates, no. Uterine Artery Embolization. Mm-hmm. Or Uterine Fibroid Embolization. So the point is foreign material is injected through the femoral artery to basically block the supply [00:26:00] of blood vessels, blood flow to the fibroids, and basically shrinking it.
That’s an outpatient procedure. Within a week, the woman should be back to her regular work.
Paula: So that’s non-invasive.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: And it’s, it’s a procedure that’s non-invasive.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: One of the non-invasive, yes. Okay? And then there’s also something called, um, magnetic resonance functional ultrasound. So think of it as in you’re in a machine like an MRI.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: And a map of the uterus is done to target the fibroids, and then ultrasound beams, like laser beams, quote-unquote, to zap the fibroids. Again, that’s non-invasive because they’re not cutting into you and all of that. Mm-hmm. And then the most invasive, of course, is when you’re having a laparotomy, when they cut open the uterus.
Paula: Mm-hmm …
Dr Cheryl Okoli: to have what’s called a myomectomy. Myo means removal of the fibroids surgically. So you have cut the woman, midline incision usually. [00:27:00] But you also have the laparoscopic technique, which is like- Okay … three holes.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes. Yeah, I like to say like video game, not as invasive as a laparotomy.
Laparotomy means, means to cut open the abdomen, not as invasive as that. And sometimes there’s a laparoscopic and vaginal assisted. So they start at the top with a laparoscopic, so three incisions, and then go from the uterus, the vagina, to remove whatever they need to remove. And there’s the hysterectomy, which is the most invasive.
Once you remove a woman’s uterus, that means she can’t have kids. No children, right? Yeah. So I always like to ask a woman, “What are your fertility goals?” Now, with the UAE, not much research has been done to show how it will affect a woman’s fertility moving forward. But the myomectomy, just removal of the fibroids surgically, has a good rate for a woman to get pregnant.
But [00:28:00] the drawback is, number one, is a few things. The recovery time is longer, weeks. We’re talking about weeks, maybe up to six weeks minimum.
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: It’s more expensive, and sadly, the fibroids can grow back with a myomectomy
Paula: So I’m stop you there. The UAE, is that the newest? Is it a newer technology?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: I won’t say it’s the, I won’t say it’s the newest, but it’s, it can be classified as one of the newer techniques.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: A radiologist interventionist does that on an outpatient. Yeah, not many people know about that, right? Because most people when they think about fibroids, they think of myomectomy or hysterectomy, right? Yeah. Yeah. But no, that’s not the case. And one thing I forgot to mention really quickly, going back to the medical treatments, a group of researchers, one set in Italy and another set, I can’t remember where this other gentleman is, but he’s of Arab background, they came up with this cocktail, if you will.
Now, remember how we talked about vitamin D?
Paula: Mm-hmm.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So
The Vitamin D & Green Tea Cocktail
Dr Cheryl Okoli: they talked about a cocktail of a combination [00:29:00] of EGCG, it’s an extract of green tea-
Paula: EGCG …
Dr Cheryl Okoli: mixed with… Yes. Okay. So that is basically an extract of green tea. It’s a green tea extract, one of the polyphenols, and that basically helps reduce the inflammation and, and, uh, inflammation in the fibroids and uterus.
So a combination of ECG and high dose vitamin D for a certain period of time helps shrink the fibroids. So if, for example, the Italian group, what they had recommended, I’m just gonna read to make sure I get it correct. They recommended a combination of 300 milligrams of EGCG plus vitamin B6, 10 milligrams, plus vitamin D, 50 nanograms a day for 90 days, and then they saw these results that the fibroids did shrink.
So again, I always recommend go [00:30:00] back to your main practitioner, be it a physician, gynecologist. Some of them are not open into this alternative therapies like this, like what I just mentioned to you. Some may not be open to that, but the research shows that there has been benefits for sure.
Paula: So the studies on that, how well know, because you said some physicians are not open to it and others.
So how I mean, for the, in the mainstream medicine, let’s say conventional-
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yes
Paula: … medicine, this is not really in the conventional medicine stream.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: It depends.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Why I say it depends, it depends on the physician, number one, what year they graduated and how they practice.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Some of them practice what’s called kind of like, um, integrated medicine.
Paula: Right.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Where they will practice the conventional and non-conventional, those who are more likely to be open. But even those who are more leaning towards the conventional- It comes to a point when they see the agony their patients are going through, they’re like, “You know what? What you just mentioned, there’s no harm.”
Paula: Let’s try it. “
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Go ahead, give it a try.”
Paula: [00:31:00] Yeah.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yeah. As long as there’s no other contra indicators based on your health history, there’s no harm.
Paula: And you mentioned there were two sets of researchers, Italians and some from the Middle East.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yeah, the second guy, he was a doctor… Let’s see if I can remember his name.
Dr. Alhendi.
Paula: Alhendi.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Alhen- Yes, yes. Just his name sounds Middle Eastern. I can’t remember if he was actually based in the Middle East, or he might be abroad but just happened to be part of this research group. But they’re just two separate studies. The Dr. Alhendi, yeah, I believe I actually met him on a talk once actually, yes.
Yes. Uh-
Paula: This is so interesting.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yeah. So Dr. Alhendi’s, his concoction was 5,000 international units of vitamin D-
Paula: Mm …
Dr Cheryl Okoli: plus EGCG 800 milligrams per day
Paula: And with, the, I’m, I’m so excited ’cause this is so interesting. I love things like [00:32:00] this. Those, uh, uh, uh, those who have actually been tested who have used it, the women who have been on these studies, their feedback, their results have been good?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Positive. So improved positive of life, yes.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: A- And again, the one, the Italian study- Yeah … I read the report and the conclusion. Yes, they definitely reported better quality of life and decrease in their symptoms. Okay. Like, things like bleeding was one of them if I remem- if I, my memory serves me correctly.
But I can share the article with you if you want later.
Paula: Yes, we can share it with those who have attended. And we can also, when we, um, publish it on my website, we can put it on the website. Oh my gosh, this has been so good. But we’ve been talking for over 30 minutes, and so I wanna give those who have joined us an opportunity to ask you more questions on this amazing, amazing, amazing, all these, I mean, I’ve taken so much notes, um, Dr. Cheryl Okoli. Um, but let’s stop for now because even though we could talk for the whole, for another hour, and we wanna give people- Yeah, yeah … a chance to, to, to ask you [00:33:00] questions. But for those who are listening online who haven’t had a chance to join us and, you know, for the interactive Q&A, if they wanna get in touch with you, how can they find you?
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Yeah. You can find me on LinkedIn, just, um, with my name. Okay. Ms. Paula, I’m sure will share the link with you.
Paula: I certainly will.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: So just my name, but my middle name, so Dr. Cheryl Stella C. Okoli. That’s how I am on LinkedIn.
Paula: Okay.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: And feel free to visit my website, www.shalomeagleswings.care. Why?
Because I do care for you. And yeah, I’m happy to help out in terms of private consultations if you need. From an educational component, I provide workshops as well to group of women because 30 minutes is not enough. So yeah.
Paula: This, This has been so good. I have taken notes upon notes upon notes. And for those of you who just listened to all the information that Dr. [00:34:00] Cheryl Okoli has shared, if you’d like to be a guest like she has been, please reach out to me on my website, which is chattingwiththeexperts.com. I’m also on LinkedIn as Paula Okonneh, that’s my profile, or my business page, which is Chatting With Experts. Um, I have an Instagram page.
My handle there is @chat_experts_podcast. I’m also on Facebook. My business page there is Chatting With The Experts. I’d love for you to follow me there. And please, please subscribe to my YouTube channel, where you will find this particular episode there, as well as all the other fantastic, and I don’t wanna use the word amazing because it’s, I use that all the time, but indeed these women are amazing, women experts who have been sharing with all of you the outstanding information that they are the experts on.
[00:35:00] So thank you, thank you, thank you, Dr. Cheryl Okoli, for this. Such interesting and such wonderful information on these unwelcome guests. And now let’s open up the floor to those who have joined us so they can ask you even more questions than I have. And of course, you have to come back on, because as you said, 30 minutes is not enough to share all what you know.
You’ve been hiding this from me. Thank you, thank you, Thank you.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: You’re welcome. Because we, we didn’t even talk about lifestyle and dietary practices. Yes. So yeah, there’s to be taught in the future-
Paula: Yes
Dr Cheryl Okoli: … if need be.
Paula: You have to come back. Now this is public knowledge, you gotta come, we have to do a part two.
Thank you.
Dr Cheryl Okoli: Thank you.