what to expect

Hi again Anne... as far as the TURBT goes, I had mine early in the morning, was home by 1:00 p.m. I had a catheter (first time with that) and took it very easy the rest of the day. The doctor said that if my urine was clear the next morning, they would remove it. I had not seen any blood to speak of, and when I went back the next morning at 10:00 after checking me, it was taken out. By that afternoon, I was out running errands. I know everyone may not have such an easy time of it, but mine went very smoothly.

The TURBT was performed by my local uro. It was after the path report came back that he referred me to Vanderbilt where I had surgery. I did the same as you between my TURBT and first consult with VB... started reading everything I could find out there and finally had to stop because it was too scary letting the imagination run wild.

I didn't find this site until 8 months after my surgery and it was a blessing. I'm glad you are here at this point so we can try to answer your questions based on what we've learned in our own journeys.

Hello Anne... Bravo for you for taking your health into your own hands by going to a urologist on your own. It is maddening how little doctors know about the bladder to the point of rarely considering it in their diagnostic thinking, especially for women. My mass (1.6 cm) was discovered at age 55 by my very persistent female gynecologist on my first visit to check on a little blood I had seen on the toilet tissue.

After your biopsy (and/or TURBT), a pathologist will examine it and provide your doctor (and make sure to ask for a copy for yourself) with a path report which will determine what type it is and if invasive/non-invasive. That will determine your treatment options. That generally takes more than a couple of days... maybe up to a week to get the report back.

Unless you are somewhere on par with MD Anderson (for example), before having a "more serious surgery," our collective advice here is to always get a second opinion from a major cancer center who handles a lot of bladder cancer cases, even if you have complete confidence in your local urologist. My local uro sent me to Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville because my path report came back in the "rare" category which he was not familiar with as far as treatment went.

It is hard not to jump ahead since so much of the info on the internet jumps right to bladder removal. There are considerations before that depending on the stage/grade of a tumor. Many can be removed with close followup and BCG treatments, so a mass does not immediately send you to the cystectomy option. But, for anyone going down that road, there are many here who have come out the other side of that procedure and can guide them through and provide much comfort and support.

Will be thinking of you on Monday. Best wishes...

Catherine

Annie,

Welcome to our forum. You sound like a "take the bull by the horns" kind of a girl, which I congratulate you for. I am also 54, a caregiver to another age 54! You will not be horizontal for any length of time. You may even go home on Monday...and yes, you should be able to have a BM. Doug's doctor has him take stool softeners (which are over the counter), so you may want to buy some of those. Where are you located? There are people on the forum who will be helpful on helping you identify the closest major medical center that specializes in bladder cancer.

As all here will agree, the waiting is the worst part. Take a deep breath and try not to get ahead of yourself.

On Sunday evenings at 8 PM EST, we have a chat room open. You are welcome to join us there. There are people there with varied experiences with bladder cancer and you can ask any questions you have then. In the meantime, keep posting to the forum!

Anita