I was 'pregnant' for nine YEARS: Agony of the woman who battled tumours that plague 1 in 3 women - and can wreck lives

Beryl Romaine, from Essex, was one of millions of women who suffer from fibroids - benign growths in or around the womb. She was devastated when at 32 she was told she needed a hysterectomy.

With a huge bump and swollen ankles, anyone would have assumed Beryl Romaine was pregnant.Indeed, many a kind stranger gave up their seat on a train for her, asking when the baby was due.

But Beryl was not pregnant - far from it, in fact.

Her 'baby' was actually a huge growth on her womb that would not only wreck her dreams of marriage and motherhood, but leave her confidence in tatters.

The now 50-year-old was one of millions of women suffering from fibroids - benign or non-cancerous growths in or around the womb.

Symptoms include heavy menstrual bleeding, pain and the need to urinate frequently.

Around one in three women develop fibroids at some point, most often between the ages of 30 and 50.

And they are thought to develop more frequently in women of African- Caribbean origin.

The exact cause is unknown, but they are linked to the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone, which are at their highest levels during a woman's reproductive years. (After the menopause, fibroids often shrink and symptoms ease or disappear.)



There is a strong genetic predisposition, says Isaac Manyonda, consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology at St George's Hospital NHS Trust, South-West London and the Newlife Fertility Centre in Epsom, Surrey.

'If your mother had them, you are likely to, as well.'

In 50 per cent of women who have them, fibroids do not cause symptoms: they may shrink and disappear without treatment.

However, the other half experience pelvic pain (from the pressure caused by the fibroids) and heavy and/or extended periods.

Both the long and short-term health consequences can be devastating.






Fibroids are benign or non-cancerous growths that occur in or around the womb. Symptoms include heavy menstrual bleeding, pain and the need to urinate frequently

Research has shown that:
1 in 4 women with symptomatic fibroids will wait over five years before being diagnosed
Around 40 per cent of women diagnosed with fibroids have experienced fertility issues
75 per cent of sufferers say the condition has a severe impact on their day-to-day life
50 per cent of women with fibroids say that their condition makes them depressed
Heavy menstrual bleeding causes 3.5 million working days in the UK every year

The traditional way of dealing with fibroids is a hysterectomy.

But experts say many women are not being given any other options - such as less-invasive surgery or a new daily pill to manage symptoms - and as a result, are being denied the chance of motherhood.

'Hysterectomies are in the forefront of doctor's minds when it comes to fibroids,' says Dr Nicki On, who founded the support group, the British Fibroid Trust.

'A survey found nearly 70 per cent of women with fibroids had hysterectomy mentioned to them and 50 per cent were offered one.'



At 32, Beryl was given the devastating news she would need a hysterectomy to remove the fibroid - dashing her dreams of motherhood

It's a situation Beryl, from Essex, knows only too well following her 15 year nightmare ordeal battling fibroids.

'I first noticed something was wrong when I felt some lumps in my stomach while having a shower,' she told MailOnline.


'They were equivalent to a couple of grapes and didn't protrude, but they did feel hard.

'They made my tummy feel constipated and I thought "that can't be right".

'I was a size 12, I was a petite lady. I went to the GP and said "I'm putting on weight around my middle but I don't think its me getting fat because its hard".'

Her GP eventually agreed to refer her to a specialist, who diagnosed fibroids.

'I was shocked - and terrified it meant I had, or would get cancer,' she recalled.

While the doctor reassured her this wasn't the case, the news that followed was equally as devastating for Beryl.

'My doctor said: "I'm sorry madam, but the only option is a hysterectomy".'

'At the time I was 32 and engaged to be married. Heartbroken doesn't even cover it. I thought "I'm only 32, I want to have children".'

That evening she broke the news to her fiance.

'He was from Africa, and in his culture children are a must. In the end my confidence was so low that my relationship broke down and I called off my marriage.'