Private Surgery worth it?

[CherryBlossom5]

Hi everyone,I have recently had a follow up with my gynae who has told me that my Ultrasound did not show endo but has shown a mass which they think is either a ruptured cyst or hydrosalpinx in my right fallopian tube. I have consented to have the fallopian tube removed during surgery if it needs to be. My NHS gynaecologist has said the wait for the surgery means it won't happen until at least December 23/ January 24.

I'm currently taking desogestrel and it's been really helpful at managing my pain so I have been fine with the wait for surgery, however, I have updated my family who are really concerned and my parents have offered to pay for the surgery privately so it can be done sooner.

My initial reaction is to decline this offer, as it's my understanding that since I am now taking a pill that stops my cycle I am preventing any further damage from happening? I feel that if the damage is paused it would be a waste of money to pay to have the surgery sooner. Am I wrong in thinking this?

Any advice on what others would do in this circumstance would be really helpful. I have looked at the prices of local endo specialists in my area and I am loathed to allow my parents to spend so much of their money on the surgery when I know they have been saving up for their retirement.

[Circe3]

Hi there,

I had the same offer but it can be eye wateringly expensive. You could get a consultation with a specialist to have a chat with them and see if you can get a quote for the cost of operation, anaesthetic and any potential nights stay in hospital. It’s the stay in hospital that’s the biggest cost.

Then you can decided if it’s a sum you’re willing to borrow and your family are willing to pay.

It’s definitely good to weight up all your options

[SavageGold]

Hi there,I haven't had surgery so disregard this if somebody else does reply for you who has surgery.

I would wait unless it's your gynae that knows your circumstances that is paid to do it.

I say this as I paid 1400 for an mri for rectovaginal endometriosis to be checked for. I was assured the radiologist and Dr only took my case because they were qualified to look for rectovaginal endo. When my results came through they'd only checked my ovaries and the womb lining which is checking for stage one endo and for adenomyosis. This was not a mis communication from my GP. I Saw my referral letter and was told my previous scan info went with it and my ovaries and uterus were Not in question. They were to check my bowel and vagina which were not on my previous ultrasoundscan.

I'm telling you this because even if your gynae writes a specific request a surgeon might not go in doing what they should. They might take the money and leave you in a worse position cutting through nerves and ligaments near your ovaries they shouldn't be near. That's my fear for you.

Again as I say, if someone else can private message you with a team they trust you can get to, by all means, I won't be offended if you go with it. As long as you are confident and sure it will help you get your life back. That's all we want.

But I'm glad I went for an mri rather than paying for the laporoscopy. I can't imagine how devastated I'd be to know I'd spent 14000 and been totally duped.

[Avourneen]

Would the priavte op be with the same surgeon? If it is I would go private if your parents are willing to pay just because teh experience of the op could be so much better. I know this could be very different depending on personal experience but I had two ops for endo one on the NHS and one privately.

At the NHS one I didn't get to speak to the anaesthatist before the op, I had a bad reaction to th anaesthetic and found it really hard to come round after the op. I vomited for 14 hours straight and found out it was because the nurses had not read my notes and had given me painkillers that I was allergic to.

I was left in a room on my own and noone came to check on me. I had nothing to vomit into and ended up having to vomit into the water jug. I was extremely scared and eventually a nurse came and told me off about my pyjamas and insisted I get dressed. I was in so much pain after the op and all the vomiting and couldn't do that. My sister eventually showed up and took me home I was given no after care advice and just told I could go I didn't see my surgeon again at any point.

Going privately, my husband was able to stay with me in the room over night and he was there when I came round. I was able to talk to the anaesthetist and my surgeon before the op. I explained about the terrible vomiting and the allergy issue he adjusted the anaestheitc to have less of one particular ingredient. I saw my surgeon before the op he explained what was going to happen and answered all my questions. When I cam round I only vomited once and I was given painkillers that didn't make me sick. A nurse came in the room and checked on me every 15 minutes through the night and my surgeon came in and checked me over before I went home and made sure I could walk okay and that my wounds etc were alright before I left.

The nurses and the surgeon gave me clear instructions about what I should /shouldnt do when I got home and a number to call if I had any problems so I could speak straight to my surgeon. A sort of customer service lady also came and interviewed me to see if I was happy with every aspect of my care before I left.

I am sure some people have a really good experience on the NHS and I know that the horrible experience I had was down to a lack of staff because staff are so over stretched. But If I had the choice again I would definitely go private. In the private hospital I was basically treated like a paying customer the staff wanted to please and had fear of treating me poorly. In the NHS I was treated like a number and as though though no one cared. It was far lesss scary having the op in the private hospital. But the big thing is which surgeon you have. There is a huge difference in how skilled surgeons are at treating endo so go wherever the surgeon is more specialised. That i sjust my experience some other people will have had a very different experience, I'm sure it is very different form one hospital to the next.

[Endosufferer1]

Well, I think you can wait until then but I'd strongly suggest you not to take the plane between (it usually makes things worse when you're stopping your periods) and avoid any disruption with sleeping (it affects hormones and could make you bleed forcing your parents to pay private). If you're wise, you follow the specific diet for endo + take natural remedies, I'm sure you can wait till then! 💪🙂