Dealing with unexpected reproductive health challenges can completely disrupt your life, especially when major physical changes happen during an already demanding time. Real Housewives of Atlanta star Porsha Williams recently opened up on CBS Mornings about her own sudden medical journey, revealing that she had to undergo an emergency partial hysterectomy. The 45-year-old mother of one discovered she had 21 uterine fibroids – one reaching the size of a cantaloupe – after accompanying a friend to a fertility appointment. The unexpected news put her hopes for a second pregnancy on hold and required immediate surgery, shifting her health journey in a whole new direction.

A partial hysterectomy becomes necessary when fibroids reach this scale because multiple or oversized growths can distort the pelvic structure, compress surrounding organs, and trigger heavy, debilitating blood loss that gentler treatments cannot safely manage. Fibroids are surprisingly common, affecting up to 80% of women by age 50, with disproportionately higher rates and earlier onset among Black women. Because severe cases can lead to extreme pain and critical anemia, understanding the warning signs, how fibroids grow and what surgical treatments involve can help women proactively protect their health before a condition reaches a crisis point.

What we know about Porsha Williams’ uterine fibroids

Porsha Williams’ medical history is a testament to the persistence and aggressiveness of fibroid disease throughout a woman’s reproductive years. While struggling with fertility issues at the age of late 20s, the entrepreneur and reality star was diagnosed for the first time with uterine fibroids. In an early pregnancy, the fibroid outgrew the gestational sac at four months, leading to a heart-wrenching miscarriage. They treated Williams by removing the tumors, but leaving her uterine tissue intact, via a myomectomy, and later by reducing the size of remaining growths with a uterine fibroid embolization procedure.

Her fibroids stayed put, and she was able to carry her daughter, Pilar Jhena, and have a normal delivery in March 2019, but her fibroids came back, silently. Williams started developing typical symptoms in 2026, such as menstruation periods lasting for up to six weeks, heavy bleeding, severe migraines, fatigue and mood swings. She was 45 years old at the time and thought that the changes were just a result of her natural perimenopausal hormonal changes. The full extent of the recurrence was only evident when her fertility specialist conducted an ultrasound and physical examination and concluded that her internal pelvic anatomy had been flattened due to the weight of the 21 separate fibroid tumors, which led to urgent imaging of her pelvis via an MRI scan and immediate surgery.

What is a partial hysterectomy?

The medical term for this is a subtotal hysterectomy or supracervical hysterectomy, which is a major surgery in which the surgeon only removes the main upper portion of the uterus (fundus and corpus), leaving the cervix intact at the top of the vaginal canal.

The surgical guidelines set forth by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) state that there are significant differences between a partial hysterectomy and a total hysterectomy, in which the cervix and uterus are removed. In both procedures, the ovaries and fallopian tubes are usually not removed unless there is independent ovarian disease or a high risk of ovarian cancer.

Dr. Justus Rabach, MD, tells Blavity Health, “Women who have had a partial hysterectomy still have their natural estrogen and progesterone-producing ovaries intact, and won’t experience surgical menopause right away. The muscular womb, however, is taken off, which means that there are no more menstrual periods, and the person is unable to carry a pregnancy.”

How it works

At the time of partial hysterectomy, the muscular body of the uterus is separated from the structures that hold it up in place, and the blood vessels and other tissues surrounding it are severed, with care taken not to injure the underlying cervix, bladder and bowel.

The procedure can be performed in several surgical procedures depending on the size and number of the fibroids. If fibroids are small to moderate, surgeons favor minimally invasive surgery, using small incisions in the abdomen to insert small cameras and special instruments to core out and remove the fibroids. But in cases of extensive tumor spread, such as Williams’ case, with 21 tumors and a cantaloupe-sized mass, an open abdominal hysterectomy (laparotomy), which is a horizontal or vertical opening in the lower abdomen, is performed to allow the surgeon to visualize the tumors and to remove the uterus and fallopian tubes safely without harming other pelvic organs.

With access to the pelvic cavity, the surgical team clamps, cuts and ties the uterine arteries and ovarian ligaments that lead to the uterus. The surgeon then separates the upper part of the corpus of the uterus from the cervix at the level of the internal os. The rest of the cervical stump is cauterized and then sewn tightly to provide support at the upper end of the vaginal vault. Pelvic tissues are closely examined around the abdomen for bleeding, and the abdominal wall is closed in anatomical layers.

Limitations

Although the partial hysterectomy can cure heavy period bleeding and remove the bulkiness of uterine fibroids, there are some anatomical and clinical restrictions that patients should be aware of before undergoing this procedure.

Most importantly, a partial hysterectomy does not mean that there is no longer a need for routine cervical cancer screenings. The cervix stays in place, so patients need to continue getting routine cervical screening, such as regular Pap tests and human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, as recommended by screening guidelines.

Also, a small number of patients who still have their cervix will still have some light spotting every month, in a cyclical fashion. Sometimes, little bits of active endometrium are left on the top edge of the preserved cervical stump, and these cells may be stimulated by the natural hormone fluctuations of the retained ovary, leading to “mini-periods.”

Importantly, the process is permanent and renders the women unable to give birth to a child biologically, potentially causing significant emotional, psychological and grief issues for women who wish to bear a child.

Risks and safety considerations

A partial hysterectomy involves general anesthesia and requires penetration of the abdomen to the pelvic cavity, which increases the risk of potential complications during surgery as well as throughout the recovery process, and requires careful medical preparation.

Common complications, as noted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), are too much bleeding during surgery and needing a blood transfusion, reactions to anesthetic chemicals and infection after surgery or in the pelvic area. Since the reproductive tract runs close to the urinary and gastrointestinal systems, there is also a possibility for accidental mechanical damage to the bladder, ureters or bowel, which may necessitate surgery.

Post-surgery, patients are at risk for developing deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in their legs, which can dislodge and migrate to the lungs as a life-threatening pulmonary embolism.

Structural changes can also take place over the years. Some surgeons believe that the cervix helps to maintain the integrity of the pelvic floor. Still, any surgery of the pelvis is known to change the course of nerves or the tension of the pelvic ligaments, which slightly raises the risk of urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse for life.

Changes in the menstrual cycle are not to be expected as a normal part of perimenopause if they occur suddenly, if they soak through a pad every hour, or if the pelvis feels full every day. Get an annual pelvic exam and transvaginal ultrasound as well; Non-cancerous conditions such as uterine fibroids or adenomyosis may mimic menopausal changes and necessitate timely clinical action.

Alternatives

Hysterectomy is not the preferred treatment for uterine fibroids. It is performed only on fibroids when other medical or non-surgical treatments are unsuccessful or when they are physically impossible to use.

Healthcare providers use a series of imaging tests that can evaluate the number, size and location of the tumors before a decision is made to remove the tumors surgically. A transvaginal and transabdominal pelvic ultrasound is the basic screening tool, with pelvic Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) helping to map the pelvis in high resolution and 3-D to distinguish fibroids from adenomyosis or rare uterine sarcomas.

There are several choices, depending on the patient’s age, the severity of the symptoms, and fertility needs. Medical treatments include gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists or antagonists, which can temporarily put the body in a low-estrogen state that will reduce fibroid size and heavy bleeding before surgery.

Uterine fibroid embolization (UFE) is a minimally invasive radiological procedure in which the interventional radiologist uses a specialized catheter to inject tiny embolic particles into the uterine arteries, depriving the fibroids of blood supply and allowing them to slowly shrink and die over several months.

Myomectomy is still the best treatment option for women who want to preserve their fertility. This surgery involves the very precise removal of each fibroid as well as careful reconstruction and preservation of the uterine muscular wall.

Radiofrequency fibroid ablation (including the Acessa procedure) uses targeted heat delivered to the fibroid via a transcervical or laparoscopic ultrasound probe to break down the fibroid tissue from the inside out, and, over time, the body absorbs the dead tissue without surgery.

Why are Black women more prone to developing uterine fibroids?

According to epidemiological studies by the NIH, Black women are three times more likely than white women to develop uterine fibroids, tend to develop them at younger ages, and have larger tumors and more serious clinical symptoms. The underlying genetic factors, differences in sensitivity to estrogen and progesterone receptors, and inequities in system-wide healthcare are documented, but environmental and biological risk factors are still under study.

What is the recovery time for a partial hysterectomy?

The recovery takes anywhere from a few days to a few months, depending on the type of surgery. In patients who have a minimally invasive laparoscopic or robotic partial hysterectomy, the recovery period is usually 2 to 4 weeks. In comparison, patients who have an open abdominal partial hysterectomy with a large incision are restricted from lifting and strenuous activity and will take 6 to 8 weeks to recover.

Bottom line

Porsha Williams’ emergency partial hysterectomy will make uterine fibroid disease known, as it shows the need for timely medical evaluations. Taking out the uterine body and leaving the cervix removes the fibroid masses and gives permanent relief from debilitating masses without causing immediate surgical menopause. If women are feeling any of the following symptoms, they should not simply dismiss them as a sign of perimenopause. They should push for complete ultrasound examinations: irregular bleeding, extreme tiredness and pelvic heaviness.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a partial hysterectomy considered a major surgery?

Yes, a partial hysterectomy is considered a major surgical operation that involves entering the pelvic cavity under general anesthesia, requiring hospital monitoring and several weeks of structured postoperative recovery.

Can a uterus grow back after a partial hysterectomy?

No, once the uterine body is surgically excised, uterine tissue cannot regenerate or grow back. However, any fibroid cells that were left behind in the preserved cervix can occasionally develop new growths.

Citations

Quinn D, Raposas R. Porsha Williams Reveals She Had Emergency Partial Hysterectomy After Doctors Found 21 Uterine Fibroids. People.com. Published September 18, 2026. https://people.com/porsha-williams-uterine-fibroids-emergency-partial-hysterectomy-12127412

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists . Choosing the Route of Hysterectomy for Benign Disease. www.acog.org. Published 2017. https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2017/06/choosing-the-route-of-hysterectomy-for-benign-disease

Zhong JH, Xiang B De, Li Le Q. Blood transfusion and postoperative complications: a cautionary comment. Translational Gastroenterology and Hepatology. 2016;1:57-57. doi:10.21037/tgh.2016.06.09

Eltoukhi HM, Modi MN, Weston M, Armstrong AY, Stewart EA. The health disparities of uterine fibroid tumors for African American women: a public health issue. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2014;210(3):194-199. doi:10.1016/j.ajog.2013.08.008