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Prostate and Bladder Issues: What to do?
Men's Health | Last Active: Mar 8 12:51pm | Replies (163)Comment receiving replies
Hi, @bill5letsfixthis. Looks like lots of similarities between us. Maybe my experience will be helpful to you. BPH was my main problem 12 years ago. After 5 years on Tamsulosin (Flomax), my urologist urged me to avoid the potential problems from long-term reliance on the drug. One reason: It was no longer effective. My urinary problem became more difficult, so we decided on a TURP (transurethral resection of prostate tissue). After removal of tissue, the cystoscope lit up a small papilloma in the bladder lining that had been hidden from view of imaging technology. It was removed immediately, and a follow-up cystoscope exam found a dozen more of those tumors, all superficial and not invading bladder muscle. We performed a TURB (bladder) and removed them, followed by a 5-week treatment with BCG solution to eliminate seeds of any other tumors. Since then, I have had periodic exams by cystoscope and found no more tumors. Once or twice a year, my urine turns pink from blood leaking into my bladder for a couple of days, but it's never been "frank" (undiluted) blood, and my urologist urged me to consider it non-critical. Three urologists, actually, all said leaky blood vessels in the prostate were not uncommon after a TURP. Unfortunately, BPH doesn't give up and continues to grow as the years pass by, so we're always checking for its intrusion into the bladder. Martin
Replies to "Hi, @bill5letsfixthis. Looks like lots of similarities between us. Maybe my experience will be helpful to..."
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Thank you Martin for your reply and concern for me and everyone else you have helped on this forum. In reading some of your previous posts I was going to bring up your thoughts on my next visit to my doctor. My goal of course is to get off the Tamsulosin with a smaller prostate and I am resigning myself to the fact it will be a lifelong ordeal. I do believe I have a little time as I am as close to normal as I can expect to be and manage my prostate well enough to have a regular life (I know where all the good bathrooms are if I need to travel). I drink 2 liters of water a day and mostly work at home so voiding every 2-3 hours or so is fairly easy. Without all the pressure (no pun intended) that I need to go straight to the gold standards of TURP and HoLEP right away I am hoping I am on the right track by researching everything first. I have a number of friends on finasteride with side effects that are not acceptable to me. My doc offered it to me but I declined as I felt Tamsulosin was working for now. My Dad had a TURP in I think 1989 which basically ruined his life but my doc assures me the advances have come a long way. My doc thought a Urolift would be suitable as extra clips could be used for the large prostate but the Urolift people say no, so that's out. The PAE interests me, I just need more info.
I've never seen any pink urine, just those 3 times of a little blood at very beginning of stream, but I will bring up the papilloma question, thank you for stressing that. I have a question for you. You mention blood leaking into your bladder, but am I correct to say leaking blood from the prostate will go directly into urethra? Or, can it go into the bladder as well? The prostate intruding into the bladder from what you say would be a major concern for me with a large prostate. Thanks, Bill