The Date is Set.......Nephroureterectomy on 30th December

I haven't posted in a while, and a lot has happened........

So after many months, I had a meeting with the urologist last week at the hospital where I will have my surgery.  My surgery will be on December 30th, 2025.  I could have had a week later, but I would rather get it done and start the NY on a positive note...and over the holidays I would be just lounging in front of the TV anyway.

The standard treatment for UTUC (80% of treatments) is nephroureterectomy. You usually have surgery if the cancer hasn't spread, and you’re well enough. Your surgeon removes your kidney, ureter and part of your bladder. This is called a radical nephroureterectomy (neff-roh-your-ee-ter-eck-toh-mee). 

I have attached a recommended link to Cancer research UK.  They have a very good level of detail on UTUC without being overly technical, and there is a good summary of the treatments for UTUC.

My lesion is 2.5cm long, so stage is PT1 (at least). Below 2cm is considered small, which also lends itself to other possible treatments if you have low grade cancer.

But on the Grade scale, I am 3 - Agressive, or High Grade.  This is worrying, but the latest CT scan shows no evidence of the cancer having spread, so that is a huge positive!

So, as Jennifer Anniston would say, here is the science bit:

What is a cancer grade?

A cancer’s grade describes how abnormal the cancer cells and tissue look under a microscope when compared to healthy cells. Cancer cells that look and organize most like healthy cells and tissue are low grade tumors. Doctors describe these cancers as being well differentiated. Lower grade cancers are typically less aggressive and have a better prognosis.

The more abnormal the cells look and organize themselves, the higher the cancer’s grade. Cancer cells with high grades tend to be more aggressive. They are called poorly differentiated or undifferentiated.

Some cancers have their own system for grading tumors. Many others use a standard 1-4 grading scale.

• Grade 1: Tumor cells and tissue looks most like healthy cells and tissue. These are called well-differentiated tumors and are considered low grade.
• Grade 2: The cells and tissue are somewhat abnormal and are called moderately differentiated. These are intermediate grade tumors.
• Grade 3: Cancer cells and tissue look very abnormal. These cancers are considered poorly differentiated, since they no longer have an architectural structure or pattern. Grade 3 tumors are considered high grade.
• Grade 4: These undifferentiated cancers have the most abnormal looking cells. These are the highest grade and typically grow and spread faster than lower grade tumors.

What is a cancer stage?

While a grade describes the appearance of cancer cells and tissue, a cancer’s stage explains how large the primary tumor is and how far the cancer has spread in the patient’s body.