Recovery from surgery

15 years 11 months ago #15978 by Gene Beane
Replied by Gene Beane on topic Recovery from surgery
Rick has explained it well, alot going on plus she will have a hysterectomy.
The bowel issues is because they are moved around during surgery to get to other organs, there reaction is they are stubborn to get back there normal state. Ask the Doctor about all these things, weight loss expected,? bowel issues? hormonal changes, what to expect after she comes out of surgery, tubes etc.,and try for a private room it is so much better not having a neighbor. When she comes home she will need someone there for at least 3 weeks to keep her on the move and get enough rest as well. Possibly longer . I hope this helps you, it pays to be up on things before hand, Gene

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15 years 11 months ago #15973 by RAH
Replied by RAH on topic Recovery from surgery
From my experience, the surgery takes time to recover because:
1. They cut me open from just above the pelvic bone to about three inches above my belly button.
2. They removed the bladder
3. They removed my Prostate.
4. They cut out one section of my Intestines to attempt to make a NeoBladder (this failed and that section was removed completely from my body. They then had to reconnect the ends of the intestines)
5. They cut out a different section of my Intestines to make the Ileal Conduit. (again reattaching the intestines).
6. They attached the section of the intestine to my kidneys.
7. They cut a hole in my abdomen and sewed the other end of the intestine to my skin to create the Ileal Conduit.

So as you can see there is a whole bunch of cutting and sewing that occurs. The recovery is long and painful because of that.

In addition, it took a long while for my intestines to work normal after all the reattaching.

I hope this helps to understand at a high end view of why recovery is hard and long.

Rick

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15 years 11 months ago #15965 by CattailGal
Replied by CattailGal on topic Recovery from surgery
This is a good topic - I have similar questions. I read again and again how difficult the surgery is, but never see exactly why/how. My Mom, 79, faces RC 6/13 for "superficial" CIS. She asked the doctor if RC is similar to a hysterectomy and was told it's MUCH worse. It's hard to know if it's the pain, the bowel issues, etc., that makes it so bad. I appreciate all the input here.

Kathleen

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15 years 11 months ago #15962 by fearandfight
Replied by fearandfight on topic Recovery from surgery
Kat the fact that your Dad is getting the chemo before the surgery is a plus that's what my surgeon did with me. He said he had a better success rate doing the chemo first but Dr's have different opinions on this. My opinion is the chemo before the surgery. Talk over your with your Dr. about the 3 diversions and make sure you tell him what order you want them. I was going for the Neobladder but on the scan it did not show some cancer cells around my uretha till he opened me up so he went to Plan B the Indiana Pouch and that takes as much time as the Neobladder it's a big operation building the Pouch. I also had the MVAC and did well with it, my cancer was at the top of my bladder and was contained and that chemo kept it that way thank God. So recovery time is different for all of us but as I said Rick's list hits about all of things involved. Basically for me I was a trucker and lived life in the fast lane and I wish I was in better shape for this surgery shifting gears and drinking beers you know that old saying lol. You'll do fine hang tough. Good Luck, Joe ;)

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15 years 11 months ago #15944 by Gene Beane
Replied by Gene Beane on topic Recovery from surgery
You have an appointment with the Doctor and his assistant about the 3 deversions and which are suitable for you. I wanted the neo bladder, first of all I could not imagine having an outside bag. Then as they explained the neo bladder, I wondered if I could handle the work it takes to get to the point of no incontinence and that I may have to cath myself at times. Many have great success , some don't. I had a heart attack the year before and still have some issues with minor blockage. For my own sake I accepted the bag, and believe it or not its not so bad...if I were younger and had no issues I would have done the neo, the Indiana pouch was not offered to me. Once you find the bag that suits your body type its no problem. Its not the popular choice but for me its the perfect fit.. One thing to remember, after surgery your surgery site is swollem some, and a bit bumpy, it takes a couple weeks to settle down and get back to normal..I never had ripples before, so it was new to me,, there all gone now, 7 months after surgery,,Gene

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15 years 11 months ago #15943 by grampadonut
Replied by grampadonut on topic Recovery from surgery
may i ask what made you decide on "ext" bag ?
i will (i'm quite sure) will a a decision to make

thank you for sharing

grampadonut
dx t2-g3
05/07/08

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