Star Black OB-GYN: “Fibroids Are Never Too Large For Me”

It was a case most gynecologists wouldn’t touch — literally.

Brionna Johnson of Chicago, who was 17 weeks pregnant, had a fibroid tumor on her uterus that weighed 27 pounds. One gynecologist after another told her the growth had to come out, but the only way of doing that meant removing her uterus and ending her pregnancy. 

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Unwilling to lose both her child and her fertility, she traveled to Chicago’s gritty South Side for one more consultation. It was an appointment with Dr. Pierre Johnson — the self-described Fibroid Slayer. [Doctor and patient had never met.]

A Black OB-GYN and surgeon who practices at Loretto Hospital, a facility that primarily serves low-income patients, Johnson examined the woman’s distended abdomen and saw what others didn’t: a way to safely remove the giant fibroid without harming the fetus or removing her uterus.

And it worked: Johnson surgically removed the massive fibroid, and mother and fetus are doing just fine. Then, the doctor did something just as unusual in medicine’s buttoned-up culture: he posted about it on Instagram.

‘I’m the Best at This’

“She had the most enormous fibroid I’ve ever seen,” he said in the video, acknowledging that even the higher-ups at Loretto had trepidations about his plan. “There were so many people that tried to block the surgery” because it seemed too risky. 

“But at the end of the day, there’s so much that happens in medicine that people do not understand,” he said, suggesting that — because the patient is a Black woman — racial bias likely played a role in other doctors’ reluctance to operate. 

Then, in a video Johnson made it plain.  

“I don’t want to toot my own horn or get too big about it, but I’m the best at this,” he said, breaking into a megawatt smile. “This right here, nobody could have done this. Nobody could have completed this but your boy … I’m just so happy to have helped her.”

Though Johnson already has a substantial social media following — the bespectacled surgeon with the touches of gray in his goatee and short dreadlocks has 126,000 followers on Instagram — his triumph over a tumor the size of a small child went viral. That’s arguably because Black women face some of the nation’s worst reproductive health outcomes: high rates of fibroids, exorbitant maternal mortality rates and medical bias.

Patients Failed by the System

With Black doctors making up less than 6% of the U.S. physician workforce — and even fewer specializing in obstetrics and gynecology — Johnson’s work sits at the intersection of access, trust and advocacy. He has developed a following, using both the operating room and the algorithm to reach patients who say the system has too often failed them. 

A Chicago South Side native himself who graduated from Xavier University, Johnson got his medical degree at the University of Illinois, where he was the only Black student in his class. He then returned to Chicago and joined the staff at Loretto.

“I’m at Loretto Hospital by design and by choice,” Johnson says. The hospital, he says, “understands my vision. They respect what I do.”

Word In Black spoke with Dr. Johnson about his origins, his groundbreaking surgical techniques, and what Black women need to know when seeking gynecological care.

The following has been edited for brevity and clarity. 

Word In Black: How old were you when you knew you wanted to be a doctor?

Dr. Pierre Johnson:  I was about five or six years old. I’m just a very purpose-driven person. When I was a senior in high school, my term paper for my career goal was literally titled ‘My Life as an OB-GYN.’ 

As a [South Side] kid, I saw just disparities, racism, just poor health care, and experienced it. Through my mother, through my family, and just watched it. As a kid, I knew that one of my goals was to provide care for women all over the world–but starting with Chicago. 

WIB: How did the patient with the 27-pound fibroid find you, and how did you know you could help her?

Johnson: She’s actually — through marriage — is related to a distant cousin of mine. When my relative reached out to me and told me about it, it just didn’t sound right. Women with cases like hers typically have an issue getting pregnant. So, when I heard it, I said ‘I don’t care how big it is, I can do it.’ I’d already done 20-pound fibroids preserving the uterus. I’ve perfected a skill, a technique that no one taught me, that I taught myself.

WIB: Can you explain fibroids in simple terms for people who may not be familiar?

Johnson: Look at a uterus as a house. You’ve got the inside [rooms], the drywall, and the roof. Fibroids could be inside where you are— those are intracavitary or submucosal fibroids, and they’re a huge problem. They could be in the drywall, which is the muscle, they can be somewhat of a problem but not a huge one. Or they could be on the roof. 

If a tree branch falls off a tree and hits your roof, you probably won’t know it happened. For this particular patient, these enormous fibroids were on the roof — connected to the uterus through a big stalk. The baby is inside, not knowing everything that’s on the roof. So, getting the fibroid off of the roof should not impact what’s happening on the inside.

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WIB: What was the largest fibroid you had removed before this patient?

Johnson: Before her, it was 20 pounds. A woman from the East Coast. Think about 20 pounds — that’s just walking around with an extra 20-pound weight on your body. It’s crazy. But for this patient, 27 pounds with this large mass, think about a carry-on suitcase — a 24-inch carry-on suitcase — and put that in your body. 

WIB: How did social media change your reach and the complexity of your cases?

Johnson: When I finished residency in 2013 and was in central Illinois for three years, my mindset was: I’m not turning down any case. The hardest cases — I’m taking everything, no matter what it is. I will figure it out. 

Then I moved to Chicago, word of mouth started growing the [number of] cases, and I started getting active on social media, just teaching. People in Atlanta, Philadelphia started reaching out — ‘I’m in Atlanta, I have a problem, I heard about you.’ Pre-pandemic, 2018, 2019, that’s when people really started connecting with me from outside Chicago.

I started teaching people: if you have a problem, adjust your insurance so it can give you the opportunity to move around and choose your care. Don’t let your geographical limitations hinder you. Invest in a PPO plan that allows you to move. As I started preaching this on social media, the cases got way more complex. When things opened back up in 2022, 2023 — it was like floodgates. It just started to grow.

WIB: What questions should women ask a surgeon before trusting them with fibroid care?

Johnson: If you need surgery, the questions you have to ask are: What is your experience with dealing with these types of cases? What is your philosophy about removing all fibroids? From a complication standpoint, what complications have you experienced and how have you dealt with them? 

What is your percentage rate of success converting myomectomies to hysterectomies? Meaning, if the doctor goes into surgery planning to take out fibroids and restore the uterus, how many times has he or she ended up aborting that plan and having to take the whole uterus out? That’s an excellent question that people don’t ask. 

WIB: You mention a doctor’s philosophy and mindset. How can a patient research that?

Johnson: When people say they do research, what kind of research are you doing? ChatGPT and Google are really not research if you’re looking at a provider. This person literally has your life in their hands for as long as you’re on that table under anesthesia. The level of trust you have to have in this person is the highest level of trust you will ever have in another human being.

That research starts with their social media platforms. Whatever they’re talking about, whatever they’re professing they do, should be reflected in their personal life. If they have different types of views than you — views that are evident on their platforms — then maybe what they’re telling you might not be exactly what it is. Do research on them as a person, not just as a physician. Don’t just look at their Google reviews. Don’t just look at a website. 

WIB: What are the red flags a woman should never overlook when choosing a provider?

Johnson: If a person has ideals and thoughts that aren’t in alignment with your cultural beliefs, they may not be the person you think they are. When you’re looking at providers — people you’re trusting with your life — don’t think that because they wear a white coat, they’re going to look at you differently than their actual beliefs.

If they think DEI is a problem, why do you think that now, when caring for you, they’re going to treat you like they would treat their own mother or sister?

WIB You went viral for saying patients should look beyond gender and race when choosing a surgeon. Can you explain that?

Johnson: As a women’s healthcare specialist, I said that when you are choosing a surgeon, it should not matter the gender, the race, the sexual orientation — none of that matters. You have to look into the soul and the ideals of that person. I’m saying cut out race, gender, all of those things from your criteria. 

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There are Caucasian providers who are in this for the right reasons and will take care of you. Don’t exclude someone you need because of a bias. Look at a person and look at what they bring to the table, and who they really are. If we did more of that, we would watch the numbers change.

WIB: Any final advice for women navigating fibroid care and gynecological health?

Johnson: Understand you have options. Get a second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth opinion. Somebody is going to talk to you and you’ll feel it — ‘Ah, this is my person.’ Don’t limit yourself. 

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