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First visit to Urologist today and Cystoscopy with TURBIT required.
My first visit with the Urologist was a surprise. I was told she would not be doing a Cystoscopy but that is exactly what she did in a very short time. I liked her immediately, but did not have much time to ask any questions. She did squeeze me today instead of making me wait until Monday.
She showed me the scan as she was doing it and said it was a low grade papillary tumor. She did not feel that it had invaded the wall of the bladder and that it was small (her report said 1 1/2 cm), but the biopsy would tell, but I would require follow up visits.
Her report also said “Benign neoplasm of bladder” and under procedure: Cystoscopy TURBT 2-5 cm –
Notes: ASAP, outpatient, time 1 hour, diagnosis: bladder tumor.I asked about chemo and she indicated that was for something much worse. Sometimes she does an injection of chemo during the TURBIT.
I hope to schedule this procedure asap, and wondered what to expect. I read somewhere on here that there can be leaking after this procedure and that depends might be required. Is this a very painful procedure??
DX 10-19 First TURB Low grade, non invasive papillary urothelial carcinoma pTa. Recurrence 11-19 Second TURB DX Papillary Urothelial Neoplasm of Low Malignant Potential (PUNLMP)
Second recurrence discovered June 8, 2020 six months later.4 Replies-
As Sara Anne said it all depends. I did not have to have a catheter. After a day I was back to normal activity so… let us hope you experience the same. One warning. If the pathology shows high grade the TURB is almost always re-done just to be safe. At first I did nor understand it but, I do know.!
DX 5/6/2008 TAG3 papillary tumor .5 CM in size. 2 TURBS followed by 6 instillations of BCG weekly with a second round of 6 after a 6 week wait.
Hi there, Doglover!
The answer to all your questions is, of course, “it depends.”
First, why the general anesthesia? The urologist will be cutting samples from the bladder lining to send to the pathologist for analysis. Believe me, you would rather be asleep for this!!! Occasionally when just a small section is needed for a re-check it will be done during a cystoscopy, but not often.
As for what to expect afterwards…again, “it depends.” It depends on how many samples are taken and how deep the urologist needs to cut to get all of it. Also, for some reason, males seem to have a harder time with the procedure than women, including the need for a catheter after. In my case once I recovered from the anesthetic I was as good as new and didn’t have any issues such as lifting…was completely normal.
Your mileage may vary.
Good luck to you
Sara Anne
Diagnosis 2-08 Small papillary TCC; CIS
BCG; BCG maintenance
Vice-President, American Bladder Cancer Society
Forum Moderator
Alan,
Thank you Alan. I am sorry you got a high grade after being told low grade, that must have been a deep disappointment. I am praying that will not happen, but thank you for warning me. Nothing can truly be known until the lab result. I already had a surprise today when the scheduler said that she always listed them as benign until the pathology was returned. So much for the happy thoughts.
Isn’t the surgeon using the same Cystoscope to do the surgery that is used on the exam? I was told she preferred anesthesia instead of a local, but it would still be outpatient. She said I would not be able to exercise for at least a week. I read somewhere about lifting heavy things ie a bag of groceries, and no normal activity for 4-6 weeks. If that is the case, I would need to have as much information as possible to prepare because I don’t have anyone to help me in any way. A bag of dog food alone is 17 pounds, and kitty litter seems even heavier. I did request the post op information well in advance for that reason. I may be able to have it done in a couple days because a patient canceled.
There are many people here that have experienced TURBT and I would appreciate knowing what to expect. Someone even mentioned a catheter. The doctor did not mention one.
DX 10-19 First TURB Low grade, non invasive papillary urothelial carcinoma pTa. Recurrence 11-19 Second TURB DX Papillary Urothelial Neoplasm of Low Malignant Potential (PUNLMP)
Second recurrence discovered June 8, 2020 six months later.
For most the TURB is a non event. It all depends what the surgeon sees while in there. Your URO is giving you an educated guess on what the mass is. Whether it is even cancer. They simply do not know exactly what it is until the pathology is done. My URO surmised the same and was surprised when it came back high grade. You may have mild spasms for a few hours, pass a little blood. Often a chemo wash is done to kill off any remaining cells that may float or try and re-seed.
If it is cancer and low grade, you will probably be put on “watch and wait/observe” with 3 month scopes to be sure it does not come back for 1-2 years, then 6 months and later 12 months. If its high grade you will probably be given BCG which is immunotherapy. It is basically a weakened/dead tuberculosis cocktail that revs up the immune system. For more info just use the web site here. Also, if high grade a 2nd TURB is often done to be sure the stage.
DX 5/6/2008 TAG3 papillary tumor .5 CM in size. 2 TURBS followed by 6 instillations of BCG weekly with a second round of 6 after a 6 week wait.Sign In to reply.
