I hope I'm jumping the Gun!

[Lawnmower Man]

Hi Guys,

Just over a month ago I had an incident that alarmed me.  I'll drive my self down to A&E I thought then realised that if they admitted me I would rack up some hefty car park charges. So I called the NHS help line.  

They advised me to visit the Doctor the following morning.   Which I duly did.  

The Doctor spoke about the possibilities of it being a Prostate problem but I'd already had the checks for that along with some blood tests to give them a base line for the future. When he looked up those results,  he said it didn't look like I'd get Prostate Cancer now as everything was normal.  None the less he would do another check just to be sure. (Hmmm.)  No problem found.  So he referred me to the Hospital for further investigation that meant I would have something smaller than his finger poked up a smaller hole in my body.

So on return from my trip to Spain I found my appointment amongst the post.  I needed to provide a Blood sample and only had about 35 minutes to get to the hospital to in time to meet the deadline before my appointment the following day.    With a bit of heavy right foot I managed it.  :-)

So I trotted along to outpatients at the appointed time saw a very nice Nurse who asked me lots of shall we say intimate questions.  She then gave me a second appointment for last Friday.   I needed  to have a CT scan and a Flexible Cystoscopy.

So along I went.   The CT Scan required the injection of some sort of die that I was told might have all sorts of effects including me thinking I was going to wet myself though the Radiologist assured me I would not.  :-)   Having injected the die I had to walk about for a minute or two.  Well it was better than just lying on the table.  But after about two circuits of the CT Scanner that started to be pretty non mind taxing too.  

After the CT scan I went for the Flexible Cystoscopy.  Now I know that we are pretty good a making things small these days so I had my idea of what the size of the Cystoscope would be.  The Nurse administered the local anesthetic then unleashed the Cystoscope.  Bloody hell I thought "That will never fit!!!".

Next I started watching the screen as the camera made it's way in to the more "discrete" parts of my body along with a running commentary from the Nurse. (I should say at this point I'd not done any research in to what the possibilities where.) "That's your Prostate,   and now we're entering the Bladder".   Along with the Camera is a tube that allows them to fill the Bladder with Saline solution.  So next she instructs the assistant nurse to squeeze the saline solution in.  Once that was done she proceeded to have a good look around.    Then into the picture came what looked to me like a pretty bunch loops of wool.  "That's the Cancer!"  she announced.  Then she showed me around my insides a bit more.  Before telling what would happen next.

"Your going to be sick of the site of hospitals."  she told me.
The first step would be a procedure called TURBT basically the same as what I have just had but to remove the tumour under general anaesthetic.   Then send it off for analysis.  
Following that I will have to be going back for regular checks to ensure things were healing and that there was no reoccurrence. In the first place that will be every three months.

There is a chance that the Tumour is benign hence the subject.

Of course once I got home I hit Google to find out more.  

It seems that Bladder Cancer is the 7th most common Cancer and 4th most common in Men.  
The NHS spend more on treating it than any other treatment.
But! it only gets a fraction of the research budget each year.

Yesterday I recieved the date for my Operation (the end of the Month)

So now I have to wait for the results to find out more and what the prognosis is.  

From what I have gleaned so far it's all a waiting game.

t.

[Werner]

Holy sh*t, Tom, that does not sound funny. I hope it turns out for the best.

Werner

[smokie]

Woo Tom, the joys of aging eh?

Good Luck with all that. At least they are not keeping you hanging around too long, but I bet every day feels long.

[Martini...LB]

Hey Tom, that is a bit of a worry, luckily you have found out what is wrong and know how to fix it, plenty of time to do your nails while you are hanging around
I am sure they have it all under control and if it is so popular (?) then they will be well practiced in resolving the problem. Mind you having things shoved up Mr Willy cannot be a lot of fun.

On a lighter note it would have been a heavy RIGHT foot on your drive to the hospital unless you have a different car to most of us!

Take care and be positive.

>Martini...LB

[Lawnmower Man]

No Werner it's not funny but I hope the story did bring a smile to your face in the way it was told.  
I'm staying pretty upbeat about things,  There is nothing I can do to change it  it's there.  But I don't feel any different today than I did before i knew all this.  So for now at least it's life as normal.

Yes Smokie the joys of being it thens to mainly be Male over 65 I think.   I hate to tell you this,  but there is a list of things that cause/contribute and smoking is one.   It's the only one that as far as I know i've come to contact with and I gave that up over 40 years ago.

Martini yes I did mean the other Left!  :-)  (Sorry my mind is not 100% focused on what I'm writing.)

As I said in the original post I did have a bit of a google and found quite a bit about  but till after the TURBT I won't know which bits apply to me.  I stopped reading it because until I know the Stage and Grade as I might frighten myself.  

Ironically last Friday evening I went to a Charity Ball in aid of Breast Cancer.   The lady that organised it had just been given the "All Clear"  but she has the scars to prove it so to speak.    

If I only need the TURBT then I won't have any scars.   As long as all goes well I'll be around for a good while yet.   Lets put it this way I intend to visit a field in France next June.  :-)


t.

[nopanic - neil]

Clucking Bell Tom!

not sure what to say -but good luck and hope all goes well

I know they are brilliant at hospitals and they have great nurses and Dr's - but they still scare the C@@p out of me -

So I'm sure will be mowing lawns for a long time, and sure we will all being drinking beer/wine/spirits and Tea in a field in france soon

So sharpen that mower blade and get mowing! (hey that could be the next BBC program)

Man Hug
Neil

[landman]

Tom,

Good luck with all of that - it sounds properly scary.

Not sure if this helps but a colleague of mine collapsed in Sainsburys back in May.  She was whisked off to A&E, where she underwent a CAT scan.

They found a tumour on her brain the size of a tennis ball.

After a week and an exploratory op they declare the tumour as benign!

Though she has undergone major brain surgery and cannot drive until the new year she is fit & well and you would never know what she's been through.

So here's hoping that your's is equally benign and you'll be fighting fit for next June.

Regards,

Paul 

[Canada Phil]

Hi Tom,
           That sounds scary  Good luck with getting it all sorted out. All that poking and prodding sounds a bit uncomfortable  to me.
Hoping for your quick cure and recovery.
Phil

[Snoring Rhino]

All the best Tom, I'm sure it will be fine, a bit more time to plan that trip to Vietnam. See you in that field in France, I'm in charge of the ice!

[Lawnmower Man]

Phil,

It was not that scary really well not the prodding and poking anyway.    Seeing inside your own body was actually quite interesting.   By the sound of things I'm going to be quite an expert at looking at my insides.   

Unfortunately they don't give you any pictures to take away. 

t.

[Perdu]

Merde Tom, that isn't nice mate

You will meet us in that field knowing we are all on your side (and to be honest, hoping we're not in the team) Us old buggers don't need any extra excitement ta  

Willing you to get this crap sorted out safely friend, power of positive thingmy Tom

Merde

[Snoring Rhino]

Phil,

It was not that scary really well not the prodding and poking anyway.    Seeing inside your own body was actually quite interesting.   By the sound of things I'm going to be quite an expert at looking at my insides.   

Unfortunately they don't give you any pictures to take away. 

t.

Tom, I thought the same when I had colonoscopy, it wasn't any thing like the drain survey video I had done on my house!

[mgmark]

Tom,

The way you have told the tale did make me smile. From the sound of it you're approaching it and thinking about it in the right way, a bit at a time, not second guessing, and knowing that it takes time for definitive answers to emerge (frustrating though such a wait can be) to know the way forward. 

All the very best and fingers crossed for you.

MG Mark

[Lawnmower Man]

Hi Mark,

I'm glad my post made you smile. 

t.

 

[Stu]

Not the best news Tom but I do like the positive attitude. When your'e in France apparently being blasted during the night by an 'ultrasonic snore wave' which is set to maximum may work wonders.  I will of course be thinking of you and wishing hard for a good outcome.