New Dilemma?

Rudy,

Just wondering what you decided to do now that you've spoken with the two doctors and had time to get any various tests reviewed.

Hope all is well!

Mike

I am rooting for you Rudy!

Mike

Mike: yes for sure there are no clear answers to any of this stuff. 2 Cystoscopes ago, the doc found the first CIS. I was watching it on the TV and did not think it looked like anything. I was wrong. My last Cystoscope showed another CIS which I could now see was more noticable.

Cancer is a strange thing... Unfortunately it runs in my family. Not bladder cancer but other cancers, prostate took my dad, my brother who is 2 years younger than me has already had his prostate removed, my mom had lymphoma for years and it finally took her last year.

While I have always lived a much healthier lifestyle than any of them I am not nieve enough to think that alone would keep me from getting some type of cancer. I always thought it would be prostate not bladder.

I will get through this I am reading everything I can and getting all the tests I can before making up my mind first.

All the best
Rudy

The scary part of the CIS for me was when the doc told me it can be like one cell thick and coat the lining of my bladder. I had CIS but nobody could see anything with the scopes. Even the NMP22 urine test didn't show anything. It was the cytology that revealed it. By the time I went in for my thrid opinion re-biopsy (and to check my kidneys) they were then finally able to see something.

They were surprised that it had become muscle invasive but I was ready for cystectomy even if it wasn't invasive.

But....that's just me.
Your mileage may vary. (Would that be kilometerage for everyone except UK and US?).

Mike

Pat: as I said that was not my drug of choice, but we could not get Mitomycin and I could not use BCG again since I got a TB infection of the prostate from it.

I also did not get the pretreatment as you said. I just got 6 weekly installments which I had to retain for 2 hours. Had no problem with the proceedure other than the fact that it did not work.
Rudy

Rudy.....just my opinion but Thiotepa just not as effective as BCG plus it can have an effect on bone marrow and tests should be run......
Intravesical Administration
Patients with papillary carcinoma of the bladder are dehydrated for 8 to 12 hours prior to treatment. Then 60 mg of Thiotepa in 30 to 60 mL of Sodium Chloride Injection is instilled into the bladder by catheter. For maximum effect, the solution should be retained for 2 hours. If the patient finds it impossible to retain 60 mL for 2 hours, the dose may be given in a volume of

30 mL. If desired, the patient may be positioned every 15 minutes for maximum area contact. The usual course of treatment is once a week for 4 weeks. The course may be repeated if necessary, but second and third courses must be given with caution since bone-marrow depression may be increased. Deaths have occurred after intravesical administration, caused by bone-marrow depression from systemically absorbed drug

www.drugs.com/pro/thiotepa.html
Pat