Diagnosis --- Cancer!
My story, well I really didn’t think I would be the one having any kind of story except how I was going to recover from a two year journey supporting my significant other/boyfriend as he battled pancreatic cancer. Sadly he lost the battle on September 30, 2011. The truth is I have had so much loss in the past two years I was feeling numb but I had scheduled all my routine checkups for myself and I am glad I did.
So, November was my yearly physical and Pap test, my internist found microscopic blood in my urine and she repeated the test twice to be certain. She referred me to a urologist and they scheduled my appointment within two days. Examination and more urine I was sent off to have a CAT scan with an IV contrast I was very familiar with these types of tests, but not for me, but to have them now for me was unsettling. The next week (day before Thanksgiving) I returned to the doctor to learn the results of the scan and…more urine testing.
Ok, the CAT scan showed only two small stones in my kidney which the doctor did not think were significant enough and may or may not be causing the blood. So, as he mentioned the week before (don’t think I fully heard or understood) he was now going to use a cystocope to look inside my bladder. Ok then, I want to run as I sit in an exam room alone looking at this snake like instrument next to me-he is going to put that where? OMG, I am now sooooo nervous I am almost shaking.
So, I’ve been told by the nurse and a friend who’s done this before “it’s not so bad, only takes a few minutes”. This is first very awkward position…the reason, at 62 yrs old I’ve chosen female doctors for almost all my doctors, next it becomes clear this is not so easy as I had to have my urethra dilated as he was unable to fit the cystocope and there was some other issue with the angle….all I know is it took closer to an hour and once he was finally peeking into my bladder and I was watching on the monitor it did get interesting to watch….not fun, but interesting. So as he moved his tiny camera around inside my bladder he stopped twice to pinch a small piece of me and later told me he was sending those pieces for biopsy, he said he didn’t think it looked bad and worse case was I’d have to return regularly to have him look inside my bladder.
So, this week was the return to my urologist and I began to feel anxious about what I was going to be told. (My mind kept returning to the day I sat with my boyfriend and he was given the news he had a non-operable tumor in his pancreas) My adult son immediately said he would accompany me to the office visit and I am glad I was not alone.
Ok, I know this is not life threatening today but the fact I have cancer cells where they don’t belong is unsettling. My diagnosis is:
Low grade papillary urothelial carcinoma, with no lamina propria invasion
One of the things I’ve found interesting is two of my colleagues at work have told me their stories – both had large bladder tumors, had them removed and were treated many, many years ago and today they require yearly exams and are doing fine.
Now the worry and the questions….has anyone experienced similar difficulty with having a cystocope? I really think I need something to relax me during the procedure so I will speak to the doctor. Does this require seeking more than one opinion? As I read information and learn, this seems to be pretty routine. Are we eating and or drinking the wrong things? I am a reformed smoker; I quit 22 years ago so I really don’t think this could have been a cause. I do not work with chemicals, although the building I work in is very old.
Well, I’ve set up an appointment for my next cystocopy procedure and I am going to be proactive with diet (no more gum with aspartame, no more red wine, and it seems green tea is possibly a problem…so no more green tea). I will continue to eat healthy, organic when I can. Anything else I can learn or change, I will.
Thanks for reading - Sandy