Homepage – Forum › Forums › Monthly Treatment Calendar › Calendar for January 2024 – who is up for Surgeries, Treatments and Tests?
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Nightingale.
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December 17, 2023 at 12:36 pm #46684
marysue
ParticipantHi Everyone:
A new year is approaching and with it, many of us are wondering what the new year will bring in our journey with bladder cancer. Just want to wish everyone all the best and hope and pray for good outcomes. Upward and onward in 2024. ((((HUGS))))
December 23, 2023 at 9:56 am #46838RahaJ
ParticipantSalut,
Moi je suis nouvelle sur ce site car mon gentil urologue vient de me faire un cadeau de Noël de très mauvais goût. Alors, je suis un peu désespérée face au traitement qu’il propose. Mais que voulez-vous? J’essaie juste d’accepter que ce corps nous réserve souvent des surprises, autant bonnes que mauvaises. Dans tous les cas, aussi désespérée que je sois, j’espère avoir des bons moments en famille durant cette période festive. Joyeuses Fêtes à vous tous.
December 23, 2023 at 12:43 pm #46846Nightingale
KeymasterHappy Holidays to you as well Petro! Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to post.
My best,
December 29, 2023 at 3:22 pm #46897RahaJ
ParticipantHello,
I do have a quick question. I did have my first BCG treatment today and have been collecting information from Google. Can someone confirm we necessarily need to drink approximately 3 liters of water after this treatment? I’m sorry to ask, but I don’t see such details on instructions paper provided to me.
Many thanks for your help.
December 29, 2023 at 8:09 pm #46900marysue
ParticipantHi Rahaj:
Yes, it is necessary to drink a lot of water after a BCG treatment. This is to flush the bladder of the remaining drug which does not need to be in your bladder after the 2 hour treatment time. Drinking lots of water also helps prevent bladder infections which are common during BCG treatment. Drinking lots of water keeps the urine diluted which also helps prevent the BCG from irritating the bladder too much.
It is recommended that we drink about 2 liters of water a day when dealing with bladder cancer. After a BCG treatment I always drink about 2-3 liters of water within 6 hours post treatment to really flush my bladder and kidneys out and then cut back a bit. It means I will be up and going to the bathroom 2-4 times that night after treatment but my bladder feels better for it. Between treatments I drink 2-3 liters of water per day. Right now because I’m not in active treatment, I drink about 2 liters a day.
It is also recommended that you not drink caffeinated beverages like tea or coffee while doing BCG treatments because caffeine can irritate the bladder. Hope this information helps. Best Wishes going forward. ((((HUGS))))
January 1, 2024 at 7:47 pm #46928RahaJ
ParticipantHi Marysue,
Thanks for your reply. I will try to do the same even though in my case, I’m afraid it will be a little challenging. I go to the bathroom every 30 to 45 mins after taking a glass of water or even nothing. Not sure how I will stand 2 liters of water, but from your testimony, I understand I have to try this as part of treatment. I’ve been lucky being able to keep the BCG in my bladder for moreless 45 minutes cause the pain was just intolerable. With God help, I’m hoping do better next week. Thanks again for taking the time to respond to my concerns. It’s really appreciated.
January 2, 2024 at 6:44 pm #46941marysue
ParticipantHi Rahaj:
Have you talked to your doctor or the nurses about the pain you’ve been experiencing? It occurred to me that the BCG treatment could have caused some inflammation or the pain could have been from your bladder not being properly healed from the surgery before starting BCG.
My suggestion for you drinking water would be to drink the 2 liters over a longer period of time than I do. Maybe just steadily sip on water rather than drinking large glassfuls. Hope this helps. Good luck for this week’s treatment.
January 2, 2024 at 7:25 pm #46944Nightingale
KeymasterHi Rahaj,
MarySue gives good suggestions. I would definitely talk with your medical team about the pain you are experiencing from the BCG. They might have suggestions on reducing the irritation/pain. Drinking the recommended amount of water should help.My Best,
January 2, 2024 at 9:03 pm #46948RahaJ
ParticipantHello,
I’m currently trying to follow MarySue suggestions. Regarding the pain, it comes from the bladder itself. I always felt like i had a wound somewhere in the left corner of my bladder. Therefore, as soon as I have some urine in the bladder it has to go out due to a sharp pain from that wounded portion of the bladder. Even if I can feel some improvements since the tumor removal in October, that stupid pain is still there. I wish BCG works for me as I’m so afraid of the recommended solution.
Thanks all for your help.
January 4, 2024 at 1:36 pm #46964Nightingale
KeymasterHi Rahaj,
You should definitely tell your doctors and nurses exactly what you posted regarding what you believe to be the cause of the pain. The more details the better.Do post an update after you have had your meetings. Your information may help others wih similar experience.
My Best,
January 18, 2024 at 9:14 pm #47195marysue
ParticipantWell, I had my cysto check today and unfortunately I’m not completely clear. I still have some residual inflammation on the top back part of my bladder. My bladder has felt so much better lately that I thought I’d be clear. My uro is about 99% sure that the inflammation is just that and not cancer but to be safe I’m to see him again in 3 months and I will be sent for a biopsy if the inflammation looks worse or appears anywhere else. It has been 10 months since my last BCG treatment so I’m concerned about the length of time it is taking for the inflammation to clear. The nurse did tell me that for some people it does take quite a while.
The thing that has made me nervous this time around is that I was treated with VERITY brand BCG which is reputed not to work on CIS which I had this time around. VERITY is the only BCG available in Calgary at the moment. My uro told me that if I do end up going for another TURBT he recommends that I switch to GEM/DOC for follow up treatments.
Well, I’m still taking today as a win and will park it for 3 months. At least when I go for my next cysto it should be a heck of a lot warmer.
January 23, 2024 at 7:37 pm #47255Nightingale
KeymasterHi Marysue,
I certainly hope you get an all clear soon. You have suffered enough! Given that your bladder has been feeling good lately, I am hoping that it is just inflammation.I hope to see you on Thursday.
My best,
January 24, 2024 at 6:53 pm #47272RahaJ
ParticipantHi All, I hope you all doing well.
A little update from my treatment – I’m glad to inform the horrible pain left corner of my bladder has greatly improved due to BCG treatment. Regarding my issue with drinking water, I easily drink 2 liters/day (sometimes more) but only with Naya Natural Spring Water. When I use my regular Selection Spring Water my stomach is full with just 250 ml. Don’t ask me why. I wish I could understand the reason.
Also, I sometimes (mainly after BCG treatment), add Cysto Plus (Sodium Citrate Powder) in the water to help with my very irritated bladder. Cysto Plus Powder can be found on Amazon.
That’s all for me.
January 25, 2024 at 4:19 pm #47286Nightingale
KeymasterHi Rahaj,
Thank you for your update. Good to know that the pain in your bladder is gone. Interesting bit about the different waters and how they affect you. It would be curious to know how tap water would affect you.My best,
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