Bill,
Excellent question. Maybe one of the moderators can split this out into its own thread so so others can find it in the future.
We are all different when it comes to the catheters. The area where the prostate is typically is the area of most discomfort. For some, it is nothing at all and for others it is painful. Even when there is pain (I used to have pain at that spot) it is just for a moment as the catheter is pushed through. After that it is fine.
Anxiety is one thing that can cause things to be even worse.
What they should do as a standard protocol for BCG treatment is insert some lidocaine and then wait 5 to ten minutes for that to work it's way down a bit. That numbs things up a bit.
Then you basically want to just relax. For most men it doesn't hurt a lot. It's uncomfortable as we're not used to things going in there but it is typically not significant pain. There are exceptions to that though and you do at least want that lidocaine gel prior to the procedure.
I'd suggest just doing that the first time. If you find it does cause you pain, then ask the doc to prescribe you something like valium which you can take prior to subsequent treatments. If you take a sedative prior however, be sure to get someone to drive you.
Getting in an accident and leaking your BCG out would not be a good thing. Need to call out the hazmat team.
Let us know how it goes the first time. The anxiety ahead of the catheter is typically a lot worse than the catheter itself. If you have really bad enlarged prostate (I did), then it can make the pain a bit worse but again, it is typically only for an instant as it passes through the prostate sphincter.
Good luck! You should be just fine.
Mike
Age 54
10/31/06 dx CIS (TisG3) non-invasive (at 47)
9/19/08 TURB/TUIP dx Invasive T2G3
10/8/08 RC neobladder(at 49)
2/15/13 T4G3N3M1 distant metastases(at 53)
9/2013 finished chemo -cancer free again
1/2014 ct scan results....distant mets
2/2014 ct result...spread to liver, kidneys, and lymph...