Cryo(Freezing) Procedure on Cervix? - Cancer: Breast Message Board

Georgina27 · 03-20-2005, 11:41 PM

Has anybody out there had a cryo (freezing) procedure done to remove the precancerous cells in their cervix? Did the cryo work well enough, or did you have to have further procedures done? Also, did it hurt? My cryo is on Wednesday and the doctor said it won't hurt, but she also told me that my colpo wasn't going to hurt and IT hurt like HECK! I am nervous that the cryo is going to hurt too.
Any input will be much appreciated. Thanks!!!

lobo1977 · 03-21-2005, 01:00 AM

What is your diagnosis exactly? Cryo really is only used for very mild cases, cin1...I had it about 4 yrs ago, and now I am at CIN3 (just had a leep/laser) .......I feel that for anything above cin1, it is not as effective enough

It didn't hurt at all though - my colpo was worse than the freezing, but i didnt think the colpo was bad either...It was like cramps here and there, but no pain. I walked out and was fine 10 minutes later....just relaxed for a day or 2.

Georgina27 · 03-21-2005, 06:28 AM

I don't even know my exact diagnosis. I had an "atypical" pap in December, an "atypical" repeat pap in January, and a colpo in February. The colp[o showed that I have precancerous cells in my cervix due to HPV. I know what HPV is because my friends had/has it, but she also had warts, which I don't have. I have that "invisible" strain of HPV, the kind that has no medical effect on men so that they don't know that they are carriers. Other than that, I don't know anything.
What is this CIN1 or CIN3 that you are speaking of? Thank you so much for your help . . . I hope I can become more educated before Wednesday (my cryo), so that I can ask the doctor these direct questions about my diagnosis. So far she has been very vague and just acts like, "OK. Come in on Wednesday and we'll take care of it." If it wasn't for me ASKING exactly what I was going to be having done on Wednesday, I wouldn't even know! Same goes for when I went for my colposcopy . . .

Selene71 · 03-21-2005, 06:56 AM

Hi Georgina...I had cryo done on March 1. I have the same thing you do, and I know nothing about my diagnosis, except for my atypical pap and high-risk HPV. Since I only had a small amount of cells, cryo was done. I go in for my check-up in April to see how things went. The procedure didn't hurt(I took 4 ibuprofrin beforehand, so this probably helped things!) I thought the colp hurt much more! The doc told me that I would have lots of watery discharge for 4-6 weeks, but I only had it for 2 days afterwards. I wish you luck on Wednesday...and trust me, the worrying about it is much more painful than the actual procedure.

Please let us know how things go!

lobo1977 · 03-21-2005, 07:32 AM

please get all your papers and ask for more details

its best to decide on these things when you're informed! the stages of abnormal cells range from mild (cin1) to moderate (cin2) and severe (cin3)...then stage 1 cancer. "Atypical" can be a stage even before cin1, that's very mild and can even be caused by a yeast infection, or a fale positive pap etc..usually won't require a procedure, but close monitoring.

Usually they decide the procedure based on the stage, not the amount of cells, but certainly if there's only a VERY small amount of them, they may not want to do a more invasive procedure . Cryo cannot get the deep/advanced layers, however. Hopefully you have a mild/cin1 case in which case this would be the right thing.

It sounds like your dr isnt really into informing you and teaching you about your own situation, which isn't great

I would ask all questions, do some research online and get copies of ALL your medical records ..its best to keep informed, if down the line something else happens, you really do need to know each details about your history and what's been done. Many dr's decide on the procedure without giving the patient info or choices -I had one who scheduled a VERY advanced, slightly risky procedure which I DID NOT NEED!! IF I hadn't researched it well and looked into other options, I would have had this surgery I didn't need that could cause problems down the line .........

Good luck, come back to us once you find out the details