Tejal Somvanshi
Porsha Williams said she underwent an emergency partial hysterectomy after doctors discovered 21 uterine fibroids in May — including one she described as approximately the size of a cantaloupe. The television personality discussed the diagnosis in a Glamour essay and a CBS Mornings interview, saying she had initially attributed symptoms including a prolonged menstrual cycle, migraines and fatigue to perimenopause. The surgery ended her ability to carry another pregnancy herself.
Williams said she learned of the fibroids during a medical appointment connected with egg freezing — she had been considering having another child at the time. Symptoms she experienced included prolonged heavy bleeding, migraines, fatigue and mood swings. She had previously undergone both a myomectomy, which removes fibroids without removing the uterus, and a fibroid embolisation procedure. She later learned that 21 fibroids had developed or remained despite her previous treatments. Williams described the largest fibroid as approximately cantaloupe-sized, which contributed to the emergency nature of the intervention.
For people experiencing persistent heavy bleeding, severe fatigue, pelvic pain or sudden changes in menstrual patterns — particularly those attributing symptoms to perimenopause — Williams' account shows why medical review matters. Williams said she underwent a partial hysterectomy; Glamour reported that her uterus was removed while her ovaries were preserved. The Mayo Clinic lists heavy or prolonged menstrual periods, pelvic pressure or pain, frequent urination and difficulty emptying the bladder as common fibroid symptoms that warrant professional evaluation. Severe vaginal bleeding or sudden sharp pelvic pain requires urgent medical attention, not a wait-and-see approach.
What Fibroids Are and When to Seek Medical Help
Uterine fibroids are typically noncancerous growths that develop in or around the uterus. They vary enormously in size, from a few millimetres to masses large enough to distort the uterus. Many people with fibroids have no symptoms at all; others experience heavy menstrual periods, prolonged bleeding, pelvic or lower-back pain, fatigue, urinary symptoms or pain during sex.
The critical point in Williams' account is that she had been through two previous fibroid interventions — myomectomy and embolisation — before the May discovery of 21 fibroids. Fibroids can recur after both procedures. Williams said she initially attributed some of her symptoms to perimenopause before the fibroids were discovered. Mayo Clinic Press notes that Black women are more likely than white women to develop uterine fibroids and can experience them at younger ages and with more severe symptoms.
What Williams' account does establish, clearly and from her own first-person disclosure: symptoms that persist, worsen or change sharply should be assessed by a healthcare professional rather than attributed to perimenopause without investigation. The two conditions share enough symptom overlap that differentiation requires clinical evaluation, not self-diagnosis.
What are uterine fibroids, and when should someone see a doctor?
Fibroids are usually noncancerous growths in or around the uterus. They can cause heavy or painful periods, pelvic or lower-back pain, fatigue, urinary symptoms and discomfort during sex. Persistent symptoms warrant assessment by a healthcare professional. Severe vaginal bleeding or sudden sharp pelvic pain requires urgent medical attention. Williams' case involved 21 fibroids, including a cantaloupe-sized growth, found during an appointment she attended for egg-freezing rather than specifically for fibroid symptoms.
Williams' case is a first-person disclosure, not a clinical case study. The medical information in this article is drawn from Mayo Clinic guidance on fibroid symptoms and should not be used for self-diagnosis or as a substitute for medical advice. If you are experiencing any of the symptoms described, see a healthcare provider.
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