Just diagnosed with Bladder Cancer: What can I expect?

Posted by mrbigdog2u @mrbigdog2u, Jun 11, 2019

I was recently diagnosed with Bladder Cancer and am very curious about the prognosis. Can anyone help?

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@mamabear2

Just take it a day at a time. The lab will determine grade and stage. Have an advocate that will ask questions and research your type of cancer. Join BCAN as they are a great resource. Find the best facility for treatment. My husband is in a clinical treatment at Mayo and is doing great. Stay positive.

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Mamabear, thank you so much for your advice, compassion, and information on BCAN. I hope for the best for your husband.

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@richardab

I was just diagnosed with bladder cancer. Went to the ER very sick last week, an abdominal CT showed bladder thickening. The follow-up cystoscopy yesterday showed a growth in the bladder near a urethra. I'll have surgery in a few weeks to remove as much of the growth as possible and then the bladder will be flooded with a chemo drug. The growth will be sent out for a biopsy and this will determine future actions, if any, needed. Urologist said he didn't think (but, of course, couldn't absolutely know) that it looked like an in-situ tumor. Kind of numb at this time.

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Do you know what drug products they are flooding your bladder with? I get a combo infusion of two drugs GemDoce in Iowa City Hospital

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Me too: CIS (cancer in Siri)

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@pcondon

Do you know what drug products they are flooding your bladder with? I get a combo infusion of two drugs GemDoce in Iowa City Hospital

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The urologist mentioned 2. I was kind of in shock at the time but I believe one was Immunotherapy wit Bacille Calmette-Guerin. Can't remember the other. Thank you for the information.

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Hello. I remember how scared I was when I was first diagnosed with bladder cancer. My type was T1HG. Oh, this coming January, I will be three whole years with no recurrence. I never had a recurrence after my surgeries. Like you, I guess, your first surgery is the biopsy and your second if you have T1HG is to make sure they got it all because HGT1 is so aggressive so with my second surgery there was no leftover cancer after. The chemo that they give you immediately after your surgery is called Mitomycin, at least that’s what they gave me. They put it in your bladder right after the surgery and they have you kind of baste all the surfaces of your bladder by turning every half hour for two hours and you’re instructed to hold it in until they take you to empty it out. In my book it’s the mitomyosin that has kept my cancer from recurring. Only because HGT1 recur‘s 80% of the time, and mine did not. You see, like you, my tumor was close to my urethra, so the surgery caused swelling that made it impossible for me to urinate for about eight hours after the surgery, and then only by laying on my stomach and pushing the fluid out. I was in distress because I was also instructed to drink lots of water to flush out the chemo! It was so painful but I believe it seared the lining of my bladder and killed off any residual cancer cells. I’m almost 72 and have other serious health challenges so I’m very grateful my cancer seems to have been cured. I will be praying all goes well for you.

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@mamabear2

Just take it a day at a time. The lab will determine grade and stage. Have an advocate that will ask questions and research your type of cancer. Join BCAN as they are a great resource. Find the best facility for treatment. My husband is in a clinical treatment at Mayo and is doing great. Stay positive.

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I had a cystoscopy done by a Urologist but wasn’t told about any results of lab work from it.

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@liv38556

I had a cystoscopy done by a Urologist but wasn’t told about any results of lab work from it.

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In our situation the tumor was removed via a TURBT and the stage and grade was then determined. We knew there was a tumor from a scan so the TURBT ( surgery to remove tumor) was done right away. Did you have a biopsy done?

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@mamabear2

In our situation the tumor was removed via a TURBT and the stage and grade was then determined. We knew there was a tumor from a scan so the TURBT ( surgery to remove tumor) was done right away. Did you have a biopsy done?

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I just saw on a billing statement from the Urologist I saw that he did charge me for a lab test. I don’t know if that was considered a biopsy or not. His office hasn’t contacted me about any negative results from that lab work.

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@liv38556

I just saw on a billing statement from the Urologist I saw that he did charge me for a lab test. I don’t know if that was considered a biopsy or not. His office hasn’t contacted me about any negative results from that lab work.

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May want to discuss with doctor. Best Wishes.

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Just ran across your dX of bladder cancer, and I have it, as well as a bunch of other cancers. First, assume that you will, at some point, have trouble urinating, and/or will bleed occasionally. DO(!) contact Northshore and request a few of their sample pads. Contact Norco or 180 Med for sample catheters. This will do several things: 1) Ease your mind; 2) Get you ready if you do as I did, be unable to pee at the most unfortunate times. Then you will be able to handle several forms of crisis; 3) Wear dark trousers, just in case. oldkarl

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