WHEN Hagley Golf Club's international star Alison Nicholas started to feel a pain in her hip, she thought it must have been some kind of sporting injury.

But a scan showed that Alison, a two-time captain of Europe’s Solheim Cup team and former winner of both the US and British Women’s Open Championships, could be facing a major operation.

Alison, a coach at the Wassell Grove Lane club, was in fact suffering from uterine fibroids – a condition where non-cancerous tumours develop in or around the uterus.

Previously, the only way to treat the condition would have been with a hysterectomy, but now a procedure known as Magnetic Resonance-guided Focused Ultrasound Surgery (MRgFUS) can deal with the problem through non-invasive treatment.

She attended The Birmingham Fibroid Clinic, at Spire Parkway Hospital in Solihull, which is one of only two centres in the UK to offer the procedure.

Alison, of Halesowen, who is also a public speaker at sporting associations and women’s groups, said: “I’d been aware that my periods had become heavy but hadn’t really considered this was the source of my pain.

“As soon as I discovered what the problem was I wanted to obtain as much information as I could about the treatment.

“I knew I needed to address the pain and heavy bleeding, so to be able to undergo a procedure to rectify the issue and enable me to get back to normal activities with minimal disruption was fantastic.

“The team at Spire Parkway were great in ensuring I was prepared for the procedure and comfortable throughout. They also stayed in touch with me in the days following the procedure.

“I’ve now been for my six month check-up and all is well. It has been a great result for me.”