Dear Doctor,

Please allow me a few minutes of your valuable time to extend my thanks and congratulations to the Doctors of WOMAN to WOMAN who are referring their patients who are appropriate candidates for Uterine Fibroid Embolization (UFE). Over 61% of women patients receive critical information about their medical conditions and treatment alternatives from Gynecologists. As your patient, I had UFE for my benign symptomatic fibroids performed by Dr. Gerald A. Niedzwiecki, MD on 2/9/99. UFE, a uterine-sparing, minimally invasive procedure enabled me to:

• Regain my quality of life. Pre-UFE, I was ready to apply for medical disability. Four years of symptomatic uterine fibroids diminished me to a shadow of myself in my interpersonal relationships, my lifestyle, and my career.
• Regain consortium with my spouse; regaining 12 additional weeks a year for sexual intimacy, that was lost to us, pre-UFE.
• Keep my Uterus. Malignancy aside,female reproductive organs, like male reproductive organs are vital to the total health of the person.

My only regret is that I didn't find UFE when my fibroids were small and shrinkage would have been dramatic. In 1997, UFE was relatively new, it was/is still considered investigational and experimental by ACOG, and few Gynecologists were referring for UFE. Over the last 5 years, more than 6,000 UFEs have been performed globally. Thankfully, I found out about UFE through a Yale medical website and a newspaper article in the St. Petersburg Times. The media and internet has played a vital role and invaluable service, informing women about UFE.

Additionally, I am a subscriber to 3 wonderful women's health forums that discuss uterine fibroids and UFE. These forums receive, at the least, hundreds of inquiries monthly by women who are actively searching for uterine sparing, minimally invasive procedures for their benign symptomatic uterine fibroids.

I cannot over-emphasize the important role you play in medical informed consent and UFE referral for appropriate patient candidates. The collaboration of Gynecologists and Interventional Radiologists is desperately needed on behalf of patients. A promising collaboration that I have seen on the Internet is that of Dr. Paul Indman and Rasavi.

I would be happy to discuss any ideas that would further promote the UFE referral process by local gynecologists. I would be honored to attend local or regional medical meetings with you, as your patient and one who had UFE to answer questions and concerns from physicians from a patient perspective. Please let me know how I can be of further assistance. As a patient advocate, all of my work is voluntary, I receive no compensation, and my efforts are done as a contribution to the advancement of women's quality of life and restored health.

Thank-you for your time and help. By encouraging other Gynecologists to refer their patients for UAE, thousands of women in the Tampa Bay region suffering from benign symptomatic uterine fibroids could reclaim their lives, as well. Please call me at your convenience.

Very sincerely,

Marsha