On November 19, 2004, major media outlets around the world published reports that U.S. National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, who had taken over as Secretary of State at the time, had undergone interventional surgery for uterine fibroids (uterine fibroid artery embolization), which caused a strong reaction among the majority of fibroid patients. The procedure was performed by interventional radiologist James Spies, and the entire procedure took one hour. As requested by the doctor, Rice spent one night inside the hospital before returning home on the 20th and returning to work on the 22nd, local time. It is well documented that fibroids of varying sizes and numbers are commonly present in the uterus of women in this age group. The reason for the development of fibroids is still unclear and may be related to excessive estrogen in the body and long-term stimulation. Therefore, uterine fibroids are often combined with endometrial hyperplasia, breast hyperplasia and ovarian follicular cysts. The clinical manifestations of uterine fibroids include: prolonged menstrual period, excessive menstrual flow; lump in the lower abdomen (above the pubic symphysis); frequent urination, difficulty in urination and urinary retention when the tumor presses on the bladder; lower abdominal pain or back pain when the tumor is large and presses on nerves or adhesions; increased leucorrhea; and infertility in about 20% of patients. If you have 2-3 of the above symptoms, you are most likely to have fibroids and should go to hospital for examination and early treatment. The traditional treatments for fibroids include hysterectomy and medication. So why did Rice, an important figure in the U.S. government, choose uterine artery embolization as an interventional treatment method? Uterine artery embolization is one of the emerging interventional techniques in the past 20 years. The method is to perform a femoral artery puncture, introduce a catheter, perform selective arteriography to find the blood supply artery of the fibroid, then super-selectively cannulate to the blood supply artery of the fibroid and apply embolization material to embolize the blood supply artery to make the fibroid ischemic, shrink and necrotic by blocking the blood supply of the fibroid. This method not only reduces the size of the tumor, but also preserves the function of the uterus, does not affect conception, and avoids the trauma of surgery and postoperative scars, and the effect of symptom improvement is comparable to that of surgery. This is a new and proven treatment for uterine fibroids, and there are reasons why Rice embraced this method: (1) The love of beauty is a natural instinct. Modern research has found that the uterus, as the most important female organ, has not only the well-known fertility and menstrual functions, but also important endocrine functions, pelvic floor structural support functions and immune functions. A 1987 British study found that women who had their uterus removed but retained both ovaries aged 4 years earlier than women of the same age who did not have their uterus removed. The reason for this is that the uterus and ovaries are connected by blood vessels and the uterus provides 50%-70% of the blood supply to the ovaries. Uterine artery embolization for uterine fibroids preserves the uterus and its normal uterine functions while causing the fibroids to die and disappear, which is the biggest difference from traditional surgery. (2) High demand for quality of life. The uterus is anatomically located in the center of the pelvic floor and is connected to the pelvic wall by ligaments, which play a role in fixing the pelvic floor structure. A good pelvic floor structure is an important factor to ensure that the pelvic organs are fixed in place. When the pelvic floor structure is damaged, prolapse of the internal organs can occur, most commonly in women due to vaginal laxity and urinary incontinence due to bladder prolapse. (3) This procedure has many advantages. Compared with traditional surgical treatment methods, uterine artery embolization for uterine fibroids has the advantages of precise efficacy, small trauma, no incision, quick recovery, low recurrence rate, and preservation of the uterus.