Researcher Elizabeth Stewart, the lead investigator, explained that hysterectomy is one of the standard treatments for these benign uterine tumors, and women who undergo alternative therapies often find that the fibroids have returned.

Previous studies showed that MRgFUS could relieve the common fibroid symptoms of excessive bleeding and pain for at least a year; but the Mayo team was hoping for longer-lasting results and decided to destroy the tumors as completely as possible with MRgFUS and see if this affected symptom relief.

Their study involved 359 women who underwent MRgFUS, then were followed for 24 months and evaluated for symptom return, uterine shrinkage and other key results. The researchers found that the more completely the fibroids were broken down by the treatment's non-invasive, heat-producing sound waves, the better and more long-lasting the results.

The study appears in the Aug. 1 issue of the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology.