[Jill B]

I was diagnosed with a 4.8 cm ovarian cyst a month ago. They are watching it since. Beginning yesterday I have very bad pain in my left side and lower back and occassionally what feels like a knife stabbing me in the left ovary but it that pain only lasts seconds, only to reoccur later. The lower back pain and side pain is almost constant. I have read on the internet that ovarian torsion and ovarian cyst rupture causes excruciating pain, vomiting and near fainting cuz the pain is so bad. Is it always that bad? I have noticed more pain lately, could this just be because it is growing? I want it out so bad. It is making my life a nightmare. It is hard to get through every single day and I wake up in the morning and greet the pain again immediately and the cycle starts over. I really want to hear from someone who has gone through this.

[amu7392]

Jill:

I am post menopausal and experiencing pelvic pain, without a diagnosis yet. I'm hoping that this post will bump yours up to get some answers.

It would be really helpful if women would describe their symptoms in detail, as online sources are very generic. Your description was very helpful. With the size of the cyst, is your abdomen extended? Do you get frequent bloating or nausea? How's your appetite and weight?

In early May, I woke up one morning and thought I might have appendicitis. I had a very sharp pain on the lower right side of the abdomen. I kept having to evacuate my bowels and felt nauseous and vomited, which is highly unusual for me. I saw the doctor and there was some fecal blood, so a CT scan of the abdomen was done. There were no significant findings, yet no mention was made of the pelvic organs so it appears that the pelvis was not scanned.

Colonoscopy and endoscopy results came back with polyps in the colon. Pain still persists, almost on a daily basis. In hindsight, this started last fall, as sharp twinges, sometimes knife-like, that would last for several seconds and come and go. Other times, it will feel as if someone is pressing a knitting needle in my side. I have no appetite and can only eat a small amount of food, which often leads to regurgitation. My back feels very stiff in the morning and moving my bowels can bring on the pain in my pelvis. I do experience bloating, but cannot detect any mass (I am extremely underweight). The pain is now daily, and like you I want this to be over. It is wreaking havoc on my work schedule, in part due to the pain and in part needing to use the bathroom frequently.

I can't get in for an OB/GYN exam until August 8th. I'm going to try to get that pushed up.

Jill, I hope that you are feeling better and that others chime in here.

[WorriedMom]

Hello. About a month and a half ago I started to notice that I was having trouble getting to the bathroom on time to urinate. Especially if I was exercising. I figure I needed to do more kegels. Then a month ago the shape of my stools changed and my period was 10 days late. I thought I was constipated (even though I was going a little bit everyday) Then one morning I woke up and could feel a orange size ball in my tummy under my belly button. Every so often I was having lower back pains. My last period never came. I took a pregnancy test- not pregnant. I went to a GI doctor who sent me for an abdomen ultrasound. Since my period was late my OB added in a pelvic ultrasound. Abdomen was all good. They instantly found a gigantic cyst on my left ovary via ultrasound. My OB now is sending me to get a CA-125 blood test and now I am going in for a CT Scan to try to find out if this could be cancerous. I am freaking out beyond belief and trying my best to stay in the now and only deal with the reality of what we know. WHich is I will have surgery to remove this thing. My OB has told me that it is not filled with liquid and there are many parts to it from what they can see on the ultrasound so cancer can not be ruled out. I am a mommy of 2 kids. 40 years old and I DO NOT WANT CANCER! Prayers and thoughts are welcomed and would love to hear from other woman. I had my last annual 6 mos ago and nothing was detected. I had ultrasouns with my now 2.5 year old monthly to watch my fluid and nothing was ever seen. The cyst feels huge. I can feel it with my fingers on the outside as well as when I am moving around- it feels like I am 5 mos pregnant. NOt sure how it could just appear and be so large so quickly.