Uterine cancer: Anyone have pain months after complete hysterectomy?

Hi! I have had multiple surgeries in my abdomen and pelvis, including a total hysterectomy. I’m wondering if your pain might be due from adhesions that formed after your surgery and are now pulling on your hip. Adhesions are common after surgery but can cause major issues for like 2% of people (I’m one of them).

Adhesions can cause pain, bloating/distended abdomen, constipation/diarrhea, nausea/vomiting. I’ve also had bowel obstructions too which can occur. I have really bad hip/back/thigh pain that’s from adhesions that have taken over my insides.

Adhesions are not normally seen on imaging and there’s no blood test. They are only seen during surgery, which also causes them.

Thank you so much, I was wondering the same. Years ago I had an appendectomy and the pain seems to be very close to that and my new scar from the hysterectomy. Do you think a bowel obstruction would show up on a abdominal CT?

Generally yes bowel obstructions show up on a CT scan.

Thanks so much!

I realize that this thread is more than a year old now, but jjevits pain is exactly what I am experiencing now, too. I had a total hysterectomy on 12/30/24, and it went just fine. At about two weeks post, I started to have a large rash around only one of my incisions, and then I developed some soreness in right hip. But I could manage and sleep just fine. Then, I had 2 very high doses of Brachy at 6 weeks. I was fine after the Brachy, but did travel/fly and pushed myself. Now, I'm having the same pain (especially when I twist a certain way or go up steps) in the right pelvis and hip and it runs down my thigh. I saw my Onco surgeon's NP less than a week ago, and she said the rash was an allergic reaction, and the right-side pain probably just a pinched nerve. She did not recommend any tests.

The pain is not subsiding (but the rash is with Zyrtec and hydrocortisone cream). Did anyone else have this and get to the bottom of it? They had me on Eliquis after the surgery for 15 days. I'm hoping this isn't a clot or a tumor.

i would guess adhesions. i had them after 2 surgeries - appendix and knee. i bought a vibration plate that i sat on for my appendix (at the lowest vibration and built up) and for my knee (again at the lowest vibration) i sat in a chair and put my feet on the plate.

i waited a year after my appendix to use the vibration plate and i added in reformer pilates. it worked really well for me. it was a little weird hearing the adhesions in my knee giving off a low volume pop but it really made a difference in mobility.

if you know someone who has a plate you might want to stop by their house and check it out.

@njp515 My. nurse practitioner always asks me about any new pain during our appointments. Since I have osteoarthritis and I am active (walking, weightlifting, skiing) I almost always have some new pain. However, she told me that any pain that does not go away as it does with exercise is something of concern.

I suggest that you ask to see your oncologist and ask about evaluating the pain again if it does not subside in the next. If it were me I'd push for more testing.

My wife had same and debulking for ovarian cancer 8 months ago as well and she has been feeling what she is finding hard to describe as well. She says it's not quite pain but it does not seem normal, either. She has appointment with her oncologist this week so she will bring it up.

@maesuai Yes, please do encourage your wife to bring this up when she sees her oncologist this week. Do you know if the pain comes and goes? Is it felt in one particular place? Please encourage your wife to write down her questions and her symptoms as this often makes an appointment go more smoothly in my experience.

Do you please to go to the appointment with your wife?

It seems to come and go and it started a couple of weeks ago. She finally brought it up with me the other day as it seemed to become somewhat worse and she said she did not want to worry me. Just guessing but it seems to mostly be around the line of incision so maybe it's related to scarring? In any case, we will bring it up and I will encourage her to document when she feels it and any other observations. I believe you were asking if I attend appointments with her. Yes, I attend pretty much every appointment.