Doug,
My wife, Cynthia, is also from a small town in central IL; Havana. She had her surgery at the University of Chicago in May, 2006. If you are interested in a second opinion, you might consider Dr. Gary Steinberg at UoC.
We stayed in Chicago for about five weeks following her surgery before returning home. We arranged for a visiting nurse to take care of her post surgical needs; the nurse would visit three times per week for about an hour.
I also learned how to take care of the surgical sight and would perform the duties of the nurse several times each day, such as, dressing changes. Cynthia has an Indiana diversion, so the care may be a little different.
The other thing to remember is that a radical cystecotomy is major surgery and it will take several weeks for you to return to normal. Several small meals every few hours will be better than three regular meals for several days once you're released from the hospital.
You will probably need help getting around until your strength returns. I'm not sure that "24/7" help would be required, but going it alone could be difficult.
You also need to remember Dot's care while you're recovering. We were fortunate to have our son care for our dogs while we were in Chicago.
Hope that your upcoming appointment goes well, please keep asking us questions, and let us know how things are going.
Ed K.
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