To Go or Not to Go ?

[The_Civil_Civilian]

I had bladder cancer around 9 years ago and now I don't.
Surgery was done trans-urethra with fibre optic instruments. All is well.
I go to see the surgeon every 4-6 months and he does a cystoscope exam which I expect is what you will have
Each time no cancer seen.
For those wondering or worried, a cystoscope in a modern hospital puts a flexible instrument with camera and light (and lumen for fluid) up into the bladder and he looks around. The cystoscope is in medical sizes "sixteen French" which seems to be about 5mm. Before the procedure the nurse cleans the head of the penis and squirts Lidocaine gel into the urethra to numb things. It is an odd feeling but not painful with a feeling of pressure as they pass the prostate (at least for me). When they look around inside they put saline solution into the bladder so they can see every nook and cranny. They drain it out but after the tube comes out you might piss yourself. That is a small price to pay for knowing you are cancer free.
If the doctor has not called to reschedule it he must feel it is important. If he calls to reschedule he must think things are likely to be OK.
If this is the first cystoscope exam after surgery I am a bit surprised. Here in the US the first cysto is usually at 3 months, then 4-6 month intervals after that.


Good luck for the exam and also for your wife's illness.

Just to make you feel better, we had a plumber here and he told me about his medical issues, the subject arose as he used to arrive on jobs about 10AM. He said he & the missus usually got the kids off to school and with the house empty they used a catheter? to empty his bladder. [warning: any men of a delicate nature should stop reading now]

He said his urethra? (the wee tube) collapsed or was constricted or something, and the medical opinion was that he should have a replacement. The plan was to use a vein from his thigh as his new urethra.

To access the urethra they needed to split his todger down the centreline from top to bottom, and then open it out fully. With the urethra fully exposed, they swap with the vein and he had to lay in bed (on his back?) for about a month to make sure the joins didn't leak or go mouldy, etc. Once the tube was right they reassembled his todger again.

There is always someone worse off than you.

 

[Oops]

Certainly not wanting to enter a dick swinging contest ( or should that be 'shrinking' certainly 'stinging' )
I've got seven bloody Consultants 'concerned' with my health issues.
Their advice has ranged from, "come in as normal" ( that was the day the first Consultant in the Hozzy went down with the Lurgy, a nurse has recently karked it) to
'We'll see what the conditions are like in October"
T'was interesting having a phone consultation with a bloke I've never met, he was only going off previous notes, I was the first 'new' patient he'd tried it out with, he was at home self isolating because of contact with his colleague.
His secretary had allocated half an hour,
90 minutes later I'm saying" shouldn't you be thinking about your next appointment?"
He only had one more that day, his closing remarks were
" I'll send you a letter, I get paid an awful lot of money for this , I suppose if better try and earn a bit of it"
He's ringing again in a fortnight, meanwhile he's made me buy a bloody medical text book , and learn the first four chapters,
"You'll have as much of an understanding as I have" says he
"I'll split yer wages" says I....

One of the side effects of my condition, thankfully not yet present, is the inability to urinate, sat on a ward watching fellas being taught to self catheterise is a very sobering experience....
They tell me it's not too bad after a week or so.
Now if I ever meet the rough arsed Indian bloke who shoved a drain rod up at 2am one morning on the bridge link between Fazackerly and Walton Hospitals.......
His realitives'll hear him back home!

Good luck to all of you fighting the C, I know one or two blokes who's mission in life is to defeat this horrible disease.
MSM and politicians are constantly using the NHS as a political basketball, but we're so lucky to have some of the most dedicated and driven folk on the planet fighting our corner.

 

[CptDanjou]

Well on Thursday I went into the county hospital for a check up , like a ghost town , camera up my Japs eye , all good but had a couple of "possible" areas cauterised , two HCA`s and nurse fiddling with my knob , all good ,no more treatment for four months , now isolating in the caravan which is quite relaxing , now another dilemma has arisen , the Missus has her last chemo session this coming Thursday and I`ll have only been in isolation for 8 days , she needs a lift so do I drive her in and break my self isolation ? It would be unfair to expect anyone else to give her a lift as they would then be at risk when she comes out the hospital, guess I`ll have to take a chance and driver her.

 

[Murphy_Slaw]

The recommendation for driving is you both wear masks and she sits in the back on the passenger side. Have wipes and/or sanitizer gel in the car.
Good luck.

 

[CptDanjou]

The recommendation for driving is you both wear masks and she sits in the back on the passenger side. Have wipes and/or sanitizer gel in the car.
Good luck.

Yep , got all that , cheers.

 

[Nomad1382]

Glad you're ok, hope the missus is as well.

 

[RCT(V)]

Yep , got all that , cheers.

If you can afford a taxi, I would book one. They will know how/what to do.

I would also explain the situation to the NHS/hospital, and ask if they can supply transport/an ambulance.

Once you break your self-imposed isolation, she will want you back in the house, to complain/shout at!!

 

[PhotEx]

Well on Thursday I went into the county hospital for a check up , like a ghost town , camera up my Japs eye , all good but had a couple of "possible" areas cauterised , two HCA`s and nurse fiddling with my knob , all good ,no more treatment for four months , now isolating in the caravan which is quite relaxing , now another dilemma has arisen , the Missus has her last chemo session this coming Thursday and I`ll have only been in isolation for 8 days , she needs a lift so do I drive her in and break my self isolation ? It would be unfair to expect anyone else to give her a lift as they would then be at risk when she comes out the hospital, guess I`ll have to take a chance and driver her.

if it were me, I’d take the Mrs.
minimises the external contact so the least worst case option.

 

[The_Civil_Civilian]

The recommendation for driving is you both wear masks and she sits in the back on the passenger side. Have wipes and/or sanitizer gel in the car.
Good luck.

... and on the return, once she's seated spray her with disinfectant (I know the species, they won't like it one bit but your safety is your primary concern so steel yourself and ignore the screams and entreaties)

P. S. If you want to eat that night you're best to call at a chippy on the way home.

 

[Ex Observer]

Hay fever is especially bad this spring, must be a common thought hence why there are news pieces of the difference between hayfever symptons and kung flu

I think that the reason that hayfever is so bad this spring is the lockdown. The grass in public parks isn't being cut so flower pollen that we wouldn't normally be exposed to is having a worse effect than normal. The same thing happened during the foot and mouth outbreak twenty years ago. Fields went ungrazed in areas impacted as the livestock was slaughtered and people were exposed to unfamiliar pollen. My grandmother actually suffered from hayfever for the only time during the outbreak aged 76.

I'm surprised that this hasn't been picked up by the media.

 

[vvaannmmaann]

I'm surprised that this hasn't been picked up by the media.

It's not a gloom and doom story like Covid 19 is it?

 

[Ex Observer]

It's not a gloom and doom story like Covid 19 is it?

Oh, I don't know. An increase in hayfever leads to an increase in allergy related asthma and a subsequent rise in chest infections. This leaves people more prone to catching Covid 19 as they now have a related pre-existing medical condition. So government lockdown measures designed to reduce Covid 19 cases lead to an increase in Covid 19 cases.

I can definitely see the BBC running with that.

The media have probably missed the foot and mouth/hayfever connection as it was twenty years ago and mainly rural, whereas Covid is mainly urban.

 

[Fang_Farrier]

Certainly not wanting to enter a dick swinging contest ( or should that be 'shrinking' certainly 'stinging' )
I've got seven bloody Consultants 'concerned' with my health issues.
Their advice has ranged from, "come in as normal" ( that was the day the first Consultant in the Hozzy went down with the Lurgy, a nurse has recently karked it) to
'We'll see what the conditions are like in October"
T'was interesting having a phone consultation with a bloke I've never met, he was only going off previous notes, I was the first 'new' patient he'd tried it out with, he was at home self isolating because of contact with his colleague.
His secretary had allocated half an hour,
90 minutes later I'm saying" shouldn't you be thinking about your next appointment?"
He only had one more that day, his closing remarks were
" I'll send you a letter, I get paid an awful lot of money for this , I suppose if better try and earn a bit of it"
He's ringing again in a fortnight, meanwhile he's made me buy a bloody medical text book , and learn the first four chapters,
"You'll have as much of an understanding as I have" says he
"I'll split yer wages" says I....

One of the side effects of my condition, thankfully not yet present, is the inability to urinate, sat on a ward watching fellas being taught to self catheterise is a very sobering experience....
They tell me it's not too bad after a week or so.
Now if I ever meet the rough arsed Indian bloke who shoved a drain rod up at 2am one morning on the bridge link between Fazackerly and Walton Hospitals.......
His realitives'll hear him back home!

Good luck to all of you fighting the C, I know one or two blokes who's mission in life is to defeat this horrible disease.
MSM and politicians are constantly using the NHS as a political basketball, but we're so lucky to have some of the most dedicated and driven folk on the planet fighting our corner.

Speaking to a GP yesterday, they stated consultants (whom they could not normally get hold of or would be so busy to be only granted a minute of their precious time) are now so bored with no clinics to hold that they can't get them off the phone!

 

[Oops]

Speaking to a GP yesterday, they stated consultants (whom they could not normally get hold of or would be so busy to be only granted a minute of their precious time) are now so bored with no clinics to hold that they can't get them off the phone!

Round two yesterday, same result, he was a little preoccupied with his luncheon on the patio at the same time however!
Multitasking God...

Speaking to Cus, a Consultant Orthopod, they've split into teams,clinic/ surgery/ward....
No contact between em, he says it's very strange, but the emergencies excepted it's
"Well stick it in a cast, and have a look-see on three months time"
He says wandering down to A&E occasionally is eerie...
There's bugger all happening, just shows how many folk were takin the p*ss out of our hallowed Institution.

 

[Tongnye]

My mrs had an appointment yesterday with the local palliativedept,they decided to do it by phone instead of face to face,all the usual questions about coping with her very painful lung cancer,she is on up to 3mils of Dilaudid liquid a form of liquid morphine a day,then started the questions about, mobility and personal hygiene, showering etc,my wife found this strange and explained she is quite mobile up to now,reply to that was quite remarkable for a double amputee,my mrs decided to enquire who the doctor was supposedl consulting with, wrong lady, embarssed doctor rung off and has not phoned back , but hey that is QH for you

 

[Brotherton Lad]

The LHCO in this locstat has had therapy postponed for 6 weeks. However they've now set up a Covid free location in a private hospital some 20 miles away for next week.