This very personal blog intends to chronicle the ups and downs in the life of my grandmother, let's call her N, while living with advanced bladder cancer. It is written from the carer's perspective. A brief medical history may be necessary to give the posts some context.
N was diagnosed with bladder cancer about 4 years ago. It was successfully treated with 6 rounds of BCG therapy, until it recurred very aggressively and was discovered late this June. It would have been dismissed as a urinary tract infection had it not been for her previous history. Sonography scans confirmed that there was a recurrence and CT scans followed. Much to our (premature) relief, the tumour, though large, seemed to be localised in the bladder and the urologist suggested radical cystectomy -- the removal of the entire bladder. Considering her advanced age (79), and her history with pneumonia the previous year, the surgery took place only on August 4th, after the go ahead by the lung specialist. The surgery was successful and the wound continues to heal well (as of 20th September, 2016) under negative pressure wound therapy.
Histopathological reports revealed that there was no metastasis in any of the surrounding organs, though one peripheral lymph seemed to be affected. The surgeon felt that the lymphatic drainage of the region was such that the cancer was in all probabilities completely excised.
We were reassured, though this relief was short-lived. By end of August, N started complaining about consistent pain in the anal region, almost as if the region was boiling. Her doctor assumed it was impacted stool, a diagnosis he maintained even after the bowels had been evacuated. With constant reassurance that all was mostly well, I am ashamed to admit that we blamed N for being overdramatic and to an extent, dismissed her pain. Another physician suggested we have a complete blood count done. When results came in with ridiculously high levels of WBCs (27,000), we set about on a hunt for the source of infection. Later, blood culture reports revealed that there was no bacterial growth. On finally consulting a gastroenterologist, the diagnosis of impacted stool was discarded and an abdominal CT scan revealed that the cancer has metastasised to the lymph nodes of the pelvic region, and that a regrowth has occurred in the region of the erstwhile bladder. This was Friday, 16th September, 2016.
N was put on tramadol the same day...
N was diagnosed with bladder cancer about 4 years ago. It was successfully treated with 6 rounds of BCG therapy, until it recurred very aggressively and was discovered late this June. It would have been dismissed as a urinary tract infection had it not been for her previous history. Sonography scans confirmed that there was a recurrence and CT scans followed. Much to our (premature) relief, the tumour, though large, seemed to be localised in the bladder and the urologist suggested radical cystectomy -- the removal of the entire bladder. Considering her advanced age (79), and her history with pneumonia the previous year, the surgery took place only on August 4th, after the go ahead by the lung specialist. The surgery was successful and the wound continues to heal well (as of 20th September, 2016) under negative pressure wound therapy.
Histopathological reports revealed that there was no metastasis in any of the surrounding organs, though one peripheral lymph seemed to be affected. The surgeon felt that the lymphatic drainage of the region was such that the cancer was in all probabilities completely excised.
We were reassured, though this relief was short-lived. By end of August, N started complaining about consistent pain in the anal region, almost as if the region was boiling. Her doctor assumed it was impacted stool, a diagnosis he maintained even after the bowels had been evacuated. With constant reassurance that all was mostly well, I am ashamed to admit that we blamed N for being overdramatic and to an extent, dismissed her pain. Another physician suggested we have a complete blood count done. When results came in with ridiculously high levels of WBCs (27,000), we set about on a hunt for the source of infection. Later, blood culture reports revealed that there was no bacterial growth. On finally consulting a gastroenterologist, the diagnosis of impacted stool was discarded and an abdominal CT scan revealed that the cancer has metastasised to the lymph nodes of the pelvic region, and that a regrowth has occurred in the region of the erstwhile bladder. This was Friday, 16th September, 2016.
N was put on tramadol the same day...
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