Hysterectomy is a common surgery but has risks and downsides. There are often alternatives to removing the uterus that can treat conditions like fibroids without surgery. Non-surgical options include medications, uterine artery embolization, MRI-guided focused ultrasound, and other procedures to destroy or remove fibroids. While hysterectomy may be necessary in some cases, it should not be the default option and removing just the disease rather than the whole organ is preferable when possible.