Gorilla undegoes uterine fibroid surgery

A gorilla at the Brookfield Zoo in Illinois is the first gorilla to undergo uterine fibroid embolization.

The minimally invasive procedure was performed Tuesday on Beta, a 46-year-old western lowland gorilla, after hormone therapy failed to shrink the benign tumor in her uterus, The Chicago Sun-Times said Thursday.

The procedure, performed by a gynecologist, involved inserting a catheter into an artery and guiding it to the uterus. Microscopic particles are injected to kill the tumor by cutting off its blood supply, the newspaper said.

The zoo said Beta was also the first gorilla to give birth through artificial insemination and the first to have a bilateral hip replacement.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International