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My treatments…….
I have recently been diagnosed with bladder cancer, have had a couple of tumors removed, and now the doctor wants to do bcg. I have an unusual situation in that I live three hours away from the doctor who is currently treating me. Having read up on BCG, you lie down, a cathether is installed, and a “cocktail” is put into the bladder. You then turn every 15 minutes for two hours. Now, this doctor told me yesterday he might not be able to accomadate me at the office after he puts in the medicine. Having read up on the medicine, I cannot imagine a physician sending someone out of the office with this medicine in their bladder, not knowing how long they have to drive, etc. The medicine is not suppose to come into contact with the hands, body, etc. He used the reason that he might not have the office space for 2 hours. Anyone had this experience? Oh, this doctor has not been a people person from the beginning but because of location I’m having to use him right now.
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4 Replies
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that is a predicament. I’d probably go for a room somewhere for one night and, if possible, take someone along with me. although generally safe, you don’t want to be somewhere on your own when taking your first few doses. maybe when you’ve had a few doses and know what to expect, you’ll feel more confident about making the drive. that said, I personally was able to hang on to it for two hours for most of the doses I had and drove home. in fact the last few doses I went to the supermarket on the way home to pick up some nice food and something to read. naturally I was meticulous about being clean and made sure I was squeaky clean around the nether regions before leaving the hospital. everyone’s different. play it cautious to begin with and see how you go for subsequent doses.
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Mike,
I, too, had a 2 hour drive from my BCG treatment medical center to my home. When I initially told my Southwest Medical Center urologist about this problem, he stated I could have any urology office near my home do the treatments. I told him I did not feel comfortable with that as I knew the skill of the person inserting the catheter really mattered and that the correct temperature storage of the BCG was important. I had complete confidence in their center for those things. He then offered to let me stay in one of the 8 examining rooms for the two hours and then use the bathroom there for releasing the BCG.The nurse poured the bleach after expultion. . I did that my first 6 BCG treatments. It felt very comfortable and reassuring that it was the right thing for me at that early stage in this bladder cancer journey. For the next 6, my husband and I checked into a nearby hotel that gave special rates for patients associated with that hospital. For the next 3, I stayed at my daughters house which was 45 minutes away. The 3 after that, I drove home. My first drive home and eliminating the BCG proved a big problem with trying to commandeer the restroom stall for the 15 minutes the bleach had to sit in the commode before flushing. I was VERY conscientious about that. LOL. So after that first time, I drove home with a self sealing Travel-John. That way, I could urinate out the BCG and just allow the package to seal it away from the possibility of harming others. I was instructed to pour bleach on the urine and let it sit for 15 minutes with each urination until 6 hours had passed. WHEW what a challenge that was to this very responsible yet intimidated person!!!! :P
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OR…could you imagine the maintenance they would have to do in their restrooms if they let everyone who got BCG stay in the office to empty!!!!
Is there a hospital or anyone qualified to administer BCG near your home?
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Mike,
This does put you in a predicament. Actually, you need to void the BCG after 2 hours and pour bleach into the toilet to sit for 15 minutes before flushing. I actually did not do the 15 minute turns, though maybe should have done and my drive was only 30 minutes to home.
I have actually heard of this situation before with a poster who’s friend got turned out of the VA hospital with a 6 hour drive home and they ended up getting a hotel room, I think.
In my experience with BCG, my doctors never offered me the use of their examining room for the duration of BCG treatments, probably for the very reason that your doctor gave to you.
Anyway, I hope you can come up with a solution. I personally wouldn’t think that you could expect any different offer from your doctor, however, someone else may have had a different experience than me.
Good luck,
Rosemary
Rosemary
Age – 55
T1 G3 – Tumor free 2 yrs 3 months
Dx January 2006Sign In to reply.
