Joining a forum I never I dreamed I\'d be joining

Kimberly

I am so sorry to welcome you to this site. We are glad you found us though. Right now you are probably going through the "why Me?" stage, and that is normal. For someone as young as you and such an cyclist to boot, this cancer thing probably comes as a shock. But, you may have found the common thread!
I raced bicycles for years and I am a member of this club too! Mike is way off base.... It was the Cycling!

I know the pathetic attempts at humor do not really help you at this time, but aside from smoking, there are a ton of us here who never smoked, or had access to chemicals, and we have(had) bladder cancer.

The common theme you are going to hear here is, second opinion at a bladder cancer hospital. If you have not already, please find Mike's Flow chart for Bladder cancer treatment. It is invaluable for your peace of mind. It clearly traces the path you are on and where you are going. And you ARE Going to Get through this! I know!

My advice is simple, Positive Attitude. Find the best Dr. and Hospital. Get aggressive treatment and Start Living all over again.
This cancer is survivable and you will get on with your life again. You Will be forever changed. That invincible you will come back!

I will say that your life will change. When you have beaten this thing, life will never be so precious, or sweet!
And you WILL beat this thing!

George

Mike and Patrica are both great sources of info and have contributed for a long time. If they recommend a second opinion, I would follow up.

I echo Pat's comment about sorry that you're here, but glad you found the site so quickly.

Ross

Kimberly,

Welcome. I like Mike's comment about the cello. Very tongue in cheek, but he is a longtime contributor, along with a few others, and certainly a fountain of information. As everyone is saying, there are a lot of success stories here, so stay positive.

Ross

Kimberly,
Welcome - none of us wanted to be here, but happy we found this site filled with knowledgeable, compassionate members.
As Pat said, you can send your slides for a second opinion. In my case, I told my Uro I wanted them sent to John Hopkins, and his office took care of everything.
We all know, too well, what a shock it is to hear "you have bladder cancer", but once you collect all the information, I am sure everything will fall into place, and you will be able to make educated decisions and take control
Nancy

Hi Kimberly...sorry you're here...but glad you found us.
Ta high grade is only seen in 1 to 3% of Ta cases...so i'm thinking maybe a second look at your slides by another pathologist? We get second opinions on everything here.
Where are you located?
Its actually very easy to send your slides to someone at Johns Hopkins to take a second look...they'll provide all the info you need on their site to send them and the hospital where you had your TURB is very happy to comply. Unless you're being treated at Johns Hopkins or some other high volume bladder cancer facility??
pat

Kim, welcome to the club that nobody wants to join.

Remember BC is not the end of life as we know it.
Lots of sucess storys here. Lots of good people.
You will be just fine.

Jim