I had a flexible cystoscopy in December after which the consultant seemed confident that a tumor could be totally removed ,then 2 weeks ago I had a rigid cystoscopy after which a second consultant told me he felt it had gone well and the tumour had been sucsessfully removed. Last friday the urology lead consultant phoned me to inform me that a biopsy shows I have a aggressive and intrusive form of cancer , he went on to say that even though my recent scan did not seem to be showing any spread of the cancer I would almost certainly require chemotherapy and a bladder removal ,he was quite blunt almost brutal and left me in a state of shock . Soon after the call a oncology nurse phoned and talked me through things in a more gentle manner , however she also almost immediately stated that the most probable outcome would be bladder removal. I have been left confused and frightened as the procedure to remove the tumor had gone well and the CT scan was not showing further spread . Obviously I really do not want to lose my bladder if it can be helped , I have an appointment with a oncologist next week and am hoping to be offered options but at the moment I am feeling that I am being sold a hard sell for a bladder removal. Is this normal ? What say will I have about my treatment if so far it seems that the decision has already been made without my imput .
Hello and welcome to the community. I am from the bladder group. Early days for you yet and there may be other options on the table for you. Rather than going in to details here, could I invite you to the group where many of us have been through this, and where you will get the experience of others. Click the link to to get to the group. Once you join us, you can post your concerns there. It may be an idea to copy and paste your above post there. If you have had your biopsy results it would help. Hoping to see you over there. Just to add, I had advanced and muscle invasive bladder cancer 8 years ago. I still have a normal bladder. Best wishes.
