Blood in urine after BCG treatment: Is this normal?

Posted by tgsmith @tgsmith, May 24 7:53pm

I had my 6th BCG treatment 9 days ago, for the last 2 days I’ve had bright red blood in my urine has anyone else every had this happen

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Profile picture for allen1947 @allenshirl

Hi tms3,
My Afib was diagnosed in the pre-op before my first BC surgery in Nov 2024. Cardiologist did a Cardioversion in Jan 2025 which put me back in sinus (normal) heart rhythm. As it seemed to stay normal I was able to quit taking the Eliquis blood thinner but Cardiologist wants to monitor 24/7 to be able to refrain from having to take the blood thinner. So far that is working.

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Thanks. Sorry for my delayed reply. I've missed a few days. Is that 24/7 monitoring done with a loop recorder? Does it send an alert if you go into afib? I guess you are new to afib. I've had it long enough I don't remember when it started, but I was feeling weak, listened to my heart with a stethoscope and it sounded weird. My wife said, "we're going to the hospital". Stayed overnight and some med they gave me converted it in the middle of the night. Then nothing for at least 5 years. Then it started again and I went through several cardoversions, then a "mini-maze" and then a number of heart ablations. Finally, got a pacemaker but that didn't eliminate afib. During an ablation done from inside the heart, the doc stapled off my "Atrial Appendage" which is where most clots develop. That reduced my risk of clotting, but not eliminated. Next step may be to sever the electrical connection between the atrial sinus node and the ventricle making me totally dependant on the pacer. I pause on this prospect, but it is sounding better than playing around with blood thinner dosing when dealing with BC and bleeding from BCG's, etc. I'm giving you this history so you know some of the afib options.

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Profile picture for tms3 @tms3

Thanks. Sorry for my delayed reply. I've missed a few days. Is that 24/7 monitoring done with a loop recorder? Does it send an alert if you go into afib? I guess you are new to afib. I've had it long enough I don't remember when it started, but I was feeling weak, listened to my heart with a stethoscope and it sounded weird. My wife said, "we're going to the hospital". Stayed overnight and some med they gave me converted it in the middle of the night. Then nothing for at least 5 years. Then it started again and I went through several cardoversions, then a "mini-maze" and then a number of heart ablations. Finally, got a pacemaker but that didn't eliminate afib. During an ablation done from inside the heart, the doc stapled off my "Atrial Appendage" which is where most clots develop. That reduced my risk of clotting, but not eliminated. Next step may be to sever the electrical connection between the atrial sinus node and the ventricle making me totally dependant on the pacer. I pause on this prospect, but it is sounding better than playing around with blood thinner dosing when dealing with BC and bleeding from BCG's, etc. I'm giving you this history so you know some of the afib options.

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So, regarding bleeding from BCG, after a week from my last treatment, I'm still bleeding somewhat even with skipping a couple of Eliquis doses which I'm having to restart for safety.

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Hi tms3,
Your history with Afib is much greater than mine. A Cardioversion put my heart back into rhythm (I was asymptotic). The Eliquis was a deterrent to healing from BC surgeries. The loop recorder uses wi fi to send 24/7 heart info to 3rd party. Reports of unusual activity is sent to Cardiologist. He would call me if I was back in Afib - (to start Eliquis, etc.). I just went in yesterday after having it installed for 19 days. All good - sinus rhythm. Go back in 6 months unless unusual activity. So...not taking Eliquis and third BC surgery from a week ago is generating less blood in urine. Hope the lack of blood thinner helps me for the long run to beat the BC.
Your pacemaker presumably also keeps track of Afib, right?

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Yes, my pacemaker does keep track and I can initiate a report whenever I want. But it requires the cardiologist to take action to get the report. I have interesting new information for you regarding controlling bleeding. The cardiologist really doesn't want me off of Eliquis or reduce the dose. I don't qualify for the 1/2 dose version (age 80+, creatinine level above 1.5 and weight below 132lbs. You have to meet 2 of the 3 criteria to qualify. So, after proposing to cardiology, I started testing my theory yesterday...that taking two normal large doses could cause spikes in Eliquis effect. So, I started taking 1/2 doses (pill split in two) FOUR times a day. This still adds up to the normal 2 full doses per day, but it evens the medicine impact during the day. And volia! I'm two days into no bleeding!!! I should wait and see how it holds up a few more days before I claim victory, but I though you might want to try yourself. It appears this meets the cardiologist's wanting me to be protected from afib clotting while stopping the bleeding and letting my bladder recover from the BCG trauma. Give me a reply just to remind me to give you an update in a few days. Of course, if this actually allows the bladder to recover from the BCG, normal dosing of Eliquis might be able to be handled. The 4 half doses a day is a little more confusing to keep track of.

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