I was diagnosed with a Bartholin cyst a few weeks ago by a general surgeon. It wasn t too big in size and didn t hurt at all, just mostly annoying when using a tampon. Within the last 2 days, the cyst has become very large, about the size of an egg, is red, and pain level is off the charts; my upper thighs are also red and blotchy. My surgeon wants to delay surgery bc I m anemic (hgb 7.9, ferritin 6, iron sat 1.3%) so I can get iv iron. That will take several weeks and I don t think I can endure the pain of the cyst that long. My hematologist wont admit to hospital bc my iron isnt low enough and the surgeon says insurance won t let him admit to hospital for such a minor procedure. As an aside, I have had periods of nausea, chills (no fever), back and abdominal pain since the cyst flared up. Also, I ve had more shortness of breath than usual in the last few days as well (this has always been attributed to the anemia). I m not sure what to do. I know I feel BADLY, but it seems neither my surgeon or hematologist feel like the situation is dire so I m hesitant to go to the emergency room and rack up a bill that I can t afford to pay.