An unnamed 52-year-old woman from Italy suffered a 40 cm diameter ovarian cyst filled with 37 liters of fluid that was removed during a six-hour surgery. Medical report of the doctors of the University of Cagliari, published in the journal American Journal of Case Reports.
The patient was admitted to the hospital with complaints of excessive bloating and reflux, that is, backflow of stomach contents into the esophagus. Ultrasound showed that the abdominal cavity is completely occupied by a neoplasm. The woman herself also complained of feeling full quickly after very light meals, constipation, difficulty walking and breathing problems. Despite the massive cyst, she had a normal menstrual cycle without hormonal changes.
The operation to remove the cyst took about six and a half hours, during which the woman lost a lot of blood. 37 liters of dark brown fluid was drained from the cyst, and then the patient’s uterus and ovaries were removed. The cyst crust weighed about five kilograms. The patient’s preoperative weight was 123 kg and body mass index was 50.5 kg/m2. This BMI value indicates severe obesity. After the operation, the woman’s BMI was 28.3 kg/m2, that is, her weight was slightly above normal.
The patient stayed in the hospital for two months, spending most of his time in the intensive care unit, where he had a heart attack. The researchers wrote that two years later, the woman had fully recovered.
The scientists noted that the late discovery of the cyst in this woman was probably due to the woman’s low socioeconomic and educational status, which caused her to delay the medical examination because she assumed she was obese.
Ovarian cysts are fluid-filled sacs that develop on or inside the ovary. In most cases, they are harmless, do not turn into cancer and do not show any symptoms. An ovarian cyst is estimated to occur in 30-50% of women of reproductive age during their lifetime. Most cysts disappear within a few months without any treatment. But overgrowth of the growth can cause pain, bloating, pain during sex, and heavy or painful periods. A ruptured cyst may be accompanied by severe pain in the back or lower abdomen, bloody discharge, bloating, nausea or vomiting, fever, and dizziness.
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