New to the club I prefer not to be part of, so just sharing my experience...
67, Male, general good health
Visible blood in urine triggered a visit to urgent care the following day as my urologist was not available. No diagnosis at urgent care, so I got into URO office two days later. His professional guess was BC, as I had no pain or other issues (besides BPH which seemed to flare up at the beginning of this episode.)
Hearing "You probably have cancer" put my brain on overload for a bit. I managed the emotional concerns by focusing on my treatment and discussing the issue with a couple of trusted friends. My faith and knowing that worry would not help anything was great help in the mental sphere.
My URO confirmed a tumor 2 weeks later with scope exam and we scheduled TURBT for 4 days later. I was very aggressive as far as scheduling quickly, and my doc was very accommodating.
TURBT confirmed low grade carcinoma (papillary) which had not gotten into the bladder wall.
Removed 3.5 x 1.5 x .5 CM tissue fragments and immediate BCG. Low grade, early stage, and now gone. Outpatient procedure, in at 9am, out at 2pm with a foley catheter (3 days) and completely whacked from anesthesia and pain meds. Home to rest up...
Oxycodone (pain) for 3 days, which I had to stop because I started hallucinating while sleeping. Freaked my wife out... The pain was not bad at that point. I had surgery on Tuesday and catheter removed on Friday morning. On the road to recovery, I expected a quick heal.
Question: What are other folks experiences on returning to normal?
Currently I'm 6 weeks out, urinating at least every 2 hours (7X24), and still passing debris. My bladder was sensitive to the surgery, per URO, and I need to be patient. The prostate BPH adds a little joy to the process. Right now it's just inconvenient and a bit painful. Doc added Myrbetriq and Rapaflo to my med regimen (alfuzosin & proscar) which has helped. I've seen URO twice since TURBT related to the healing process. Did end up on CIPRO for an infection he found 3 weeks ago.
On the schedule for exams now every 3 months. Looking forward to a long relationship with the scope and learning to breathe deep.
The TURBT procedure itself was not a big deal for me. Remember if it's recommended, it's a diagnostic tool, not a cancer confirmation.