Hi everyone my name is Ann, 56 from Scotland I found out in Dec 2025 that i had grade 3 t2 bladder cancer had to stop chemo a few weeks ago due to bad reaction and my surgeon said she was happy to go straight to surgery as my scans and other screenings had indicated no spread. I was fine about the surgery but as the day gets closer all i think about is what if blah blah. Im getting a little stressed out tbh. Can anyone give me a run down of what to expect please as my mind is going whackadoodle haha. Thank you in advance.
Hi Cloudsurfer56 (Ann) and welcome to the chat forum.
I see you have made a post before in the bladder cancer forum, so that would be the best place for you to make a new post about your surgery. This chat group is a general chat group where people who’ve had this surgery may not see your post,
I’m a fellow Scot without a bladder but living in England now, and I had my bladder removed in 2020. I’ve been living with a urostomy for more than 6 years now. However, my surgery was more extensive (I had a different cancer) so my experience was different to bladder removal only.
It’s a big op, and certainly a lot to think about but there are many of us living well post surgery. There are advantages on cold nights not having to get up to the loo any more! I tried not to think about the actual surgery itself, but tried to focus on the outcome of getting rid of my cancer. You will be very tired after the op and probably need some help when you get discharged as it takes time to recover-you need to take it easy at first as there’s a lot of healing to do inside.
If you make a post in the bladder group, you’ll be able to speak to others who’ve had a urostomy formed, and those who’ve had a neobladder formed, and recovery can be different depending on which option you have and what you need to learn about your new plumbing. I didn’t have a choice in my situation as I was also losing my rectum and having a colostomy made, but you’ll find people who successfully live with both neobladders and urostomies.
All best wishes for your surgery next week, and starting on your recovery.
Sarah xx
