Can You Live Without A Bladder

Where Do These Numbers Come From

The American Cancer Society relies on information from the SEER* database, maintained by the National Cancer Institute , to provide survival statistics for different types of cancer.

The SEER database tracks 5-year relative survival rates for bladder cancer in the United States, based on how far the cancer has spread. The SEER database, however, does not group cancers by AJCC TNM stages . Instead, it groups cancers into localized, regional, and distant stages:

• Localized: There is no sign that the cancer has spread outside of the bladder.
• Regional: The cancer has spread from the bladder to nearby structures or lymph nodes.
• Distant: The cancer has spread to distant parts of the body such as the lungs, liver or bones.

Getting Back To Normal

• Exercise We encourage walking after surgery and gradually increasing activity levels until youre back to your normal level, at around four weeks postop. Many people will feel fatigued and require a daily nap, which is normal.
• Work You should be able to return to work in four to six weeks.
• Driving Most patients are ready to drive three to four weeks after surgery, once they are off narcotics and pain-free enough to react quickly.

What Is A Neobladder

Between 15-25% of cystectomy patients at Roswell Park have a third option a neobladder. When surgery does not affect the urethra, the surgeon can use part of the small intestine to create a pouch to collect urine inside the body. Unlike the Indiana pouch system, however, the neobladder is connected to the urethra, so theres no need for a stoma or external collection pouch. Urine will come out through the urethra as it did before the cystectomy.

While a neobladder works in much the same way as a normal bladder, there are some differences. When a regular bladder fills with urine, you get a sensation that you need to urinate. The neobladder is made of tissue from the intestines, so it doesnt contain the nerves that alert you to a full bladder. It gives you a different feeling of fullness, similar to what you feel after eating a big meal.

Cystectomy patients can train themselves to recognize that feeling and empty the neobladder when its full. This is done by pushing on the abdominal wall bearing down, as you would during a bowel movement to release the urine.

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One Lung Is Enough To Keep You Breathing

Our lungs deserve full credit for keeping every cell in the body alive. Essentially, their main job is to take the oxygen we inhale and transfer it to the bloodstream, as well as expel the carbon dioxide waste gas from the body. While both lungs take part in this 24/7 process, each individual lung is equipped with all the parts needed to function without the other. This is why you can survive with only one of them. Many people do.In fact, Pope Francis has lived without one lung since he was a teenager.

Can You Live Without A Gallbladder

Located in the upper right part of the abdomen, the gallbladder helps you digest fat by releasing fat-digesting bile into your small intestine. The process takes place through bile ducts that can get clogged due to gallstones. Any blockage in the gallbladder may lead to severe pain, especially after eating a fatty meal. Sometimes, it is necessary to remove the gallbladder entirely to prevent pain and discomfort. It makes many people ask if you can live without a gallbladder. Let’s find out more about it.

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When Should I Contact My Usual Healthcare Provider

Contact your healthcare provider if you have symptoms of any of the conditions that require bladder surgery to treat. Bladder cancer symptoms you should report include:

• Hematuria . This is the most common symptom of bladder cancer. Your urine may look red, or it could look pink or dark brown.
• An urgent need to pee.
• Frequent urination.

Conditions That Affect The Pancreas

Diseases that might require pancreas removal surgery include:

• Chronic pancreatitis. This inflammation in the pancreas gets worse over time. Surgery is sometimes done to relieve pancreatitis pain.
• Pancreatic and other local cancers, such as adenocarcinoma, cystadenocarcinoma, neuroendocrine tumors, intraductal papillary neoplasms, duodenal cancer, and lymphoma. These tumors begin in or near the pancreas but can spread to other parts of the body. Cancer that spreads to the pancreas from other organs can also require surgery to remove the pancreas.
• Injury to the pancreas. If the damage is severe, you may need to have your pancreas removed.
• Hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia. This condition is caused by high levels of insulin, which makes your blood sugar drop very low.

Surgery to remove your whole pancreas is called a total pancreatectomy. Because other organs sit close to your pancreas, the surgeon may also remove:

• your duodenum
• your spleen
• part of your bile duct
• some lymph nodes near your pancreas

You may need to go on clear liquids and take a laxative the day before your surgery. This diet cleans out your bowels. You may also need to stop taking certain medicines a few days before surgery, especially blood thinners like aspirin and warfarin . Youll be given general anesthesia to make you sleep through surgery and prevent pain.

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Treatment Of Invasive Bladder Cancer In The Elderly And Frail Patient

I think this is a very contemporary topic because we are living in an aging society. If you look here, and you know if you really want to look at the life expectancy you should look at charts of the insurance company and governmental agencies rather than medical reports. And this is the life expectancy nowadays where in North America. So, you can see that if you are at the octogenarians, octogenarians for the sake of this talk is 80 years old, 80 to 90, and nonagenarians are 90 and plus. And you see so when you hit 80 you still have at least seven years as a male, and nine years or more as a female. So, we are actually talking about increased population that, and Ill show you data, has more bladder cancer, and theyre actually destined to live quite long if they are in the average risk. So, if you live for example to 90 years old youre expected to live about four years if youre a male and four and a half or five years if youre a female. So, we have to bear these figures in mind.

But once its diagnosed we have a very poor, we poorly address that. This is a paper by Gore et al, and it shows that only 21% of muscle invasive bladder cancer patients over the age of 65 here actually received radical cystectomy. He shows also that there was a better overall survival, but obviously this is biased by selection.

Partial cystectomy there is very few data, none in octogenarian. This is just a series from Wes Kassouf, so I will omit that because we really dont have enough data.

Do I Need To Make Any Lifestyle Changes

Try keeping a food journal or recording your diet in an app. This can help you modify your eating and drinking habits more mindfully. It may also limit the pain and discomfort of potential side effects.

As you eat, pay close attention to how your body reacts to specific foods, especially those high in fats, spices, or acids, and record your bodys responses. List the foods you eat and how much of each food you eat at a time.

Breaking your diet down to this level may help you notice patterns in your symptoms, which can help you identify specific foods to avoid, limit, or have more of. This can make the recovery process and your overall adjustment easier and more comfortable.

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Basic Skin Care With A Urostomy

If you have a pouch, youâll need to pay attention to the skin around the stoma to keep it from getting sore. To avoid skin problems:

• Be gentle when you remove the pouch.
• Change your pouch as often as your nurse tells you to. Doing it too often or not enough can cause skin problems.
• Donât use more tape than you need.
• Make sure your pouch fits your bodyâs shape.
• Measure your stoma carefully so you can cut your pouchâs skin barrier to fit closely.

Preparing For A Radical Cystectomy

Once your surgery date has been scheduled, youll receive Your Guide to Radical Cystectomy: Preparing for and Recovering from Surgery. This booklet provides checklists for tracking each step you need to take before and after surgery, details about what to expect throughout each stage of the process, and instructions on what to do, what to bring and where to go on the day of surgery. At Johns Hopkins, we have developed an enhanced recovery after surgery critical care pathway to improve outcomes of our bladder cancer patients undergoing radical cystectomy.

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Tips To Aid Digestion

Many people worry that they wont be able to eat normally after gallbladder removal. Generally, you can eat what you likeit just may take a few days for your appetite to return. If you find youre having symptoms after your appetite returns, there are things you can try to help your digestion. Try making the following changes to your diet:

• Eat a low-fat diet. Avoid fried foods, junk foods, whole-milk dairy products, and fatty meats.
• Eat small, frequent meals instead of a few, large ones.
• Limit butter, oil and sweets.
• Avoid rich, creamy soups, sauces and gravies.
• Avoid spicy foods.
• Add fiber to your diet. Cereals, whole-grain breads, nuts, beans, vegetables, and fruit add bulk to your stool. These foods can worsen gas, so add them to your diet gradually.

Problems with digestion after gallbladder removal are usually temporary. If your digestive problems persist, talk with your doctor. Together, you can work out a treatment strategy that meets your needs.

Sexual Effects Of Urostomy

Its normal for both men and women to be concerned about having a sex life with a urostomy. Having your ostomy pouch fit correctly and emptying it before sex reduces the chances of a major leak. A pouch cover or small ostomy pouch can be worn with a sash to keep the pouch out of the way. Wearing a snug fitting shirt may be more comfortable. Choose sexual positions that keep your partners weight from rubbing against the pouch. For more tips, see Urostomy Guide.

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Sexual Effects Of Radical Cystectomy In Women

This surgery often removes the front part of the vagina. This can make sex less comfortable for some women, though most of the time it’s still possible. One option is to have the vagina rebuilt . There’s more than one way to do this, so talk with your surgeon about the pros and cons of each method. Whether or not you have reconstruction, there are many ways to make sex more comfortable.

Radical cystectomy can also affect a womans ability to have an orgasm if the nerve bundles that run along each side of the vagina are damaged. Talk with your doctor about whether these nerves can be left in place during surgery.

If the surgeon takes out the end of the urethra where it opens outside the body, the clitoris can lose some of its blood supply, which might affect sexual arousal. Talk with your surgeon about whether the end of the urethra can be spared.

For more on ways to cope with these and other sexual issues, see Sex and the Woman With Cancer.

Quality Of Life After Surgery

Since bladder removal surgery involves restructuring the way urine exits the body, a person may initially experience a decrease in their quality of life. However, managing urine secretion usually becomes easier as time goes on.

Immediately following surgery, doctors usually restrict what the person can do. This restriction, though temporary, may feel frustrating.

It is common for the new urinary system, such as urinary sacks or stomas, to feel uncomfortable at first. If the person has trouble adjusting, they may want to discuss their concerns and feelings with a doctor, social worker, or counselor. Joining a support group can also help.

The person should be able to return to all their normal life activities within 46 weeks following surgery.

During recovery, the person will be able to get used to their new means of urinating. As their familiarity with the new urinary system grows, any inconvenient symptoms should lessen.

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Here Are Some Vital Tips To Follow:

• Keep your intake of dairy products and grains to a minimum or avoid them altogether. Dairy products worsen all cases of gallbladder disease, liver disease and they are very difficult to digest. Food intolerance is a common cause of gallbladder problems, and there is research that links gluten intolerance with gallstones. A good reason to keep your intake of grains low is to reduce the risk of developing a fatty liver. There is a great deal of helpful information in our book Save your Gallbladder, and what to do if you’ve already lost it.

• You may need a vitamin D3 supplement. People with compromised liver or digestive function are often vitamin D deficient. Exposure of your skin to the suns UVB rays enables your body to manufacture vitamin D. However, this process occurs in your liver and kidneys. People with a sluggish liver often do not manufacture vitamin D adequately. Therefore its a good idea to get a blood test and take a supplement. 5000 IU of vitamin D3 is a safe and effective dose for most people, but its best to be guided by your own doctor.

• Include some bitter and sour foods in your diet. They should help to improve your digestion and make it easier to tolerate good fats in your diet. Suitable bitter and sour foods include lemons, limes, radicchio lettuce, chicory, endive and dandelion leaves. These leaves are fairly easy to grow at home if you are lucky enough to have your own veggie patch.

Low Grade And High Grade Bladder Cancer

Bladder cancer starts in the lining of the bladder in about 90 percent of people diagnosed with this cancer. Bladder cancer is called low grade or high grade.

• Low-grade bladder cancer means the cancer has not invaded the muscles around the bladder . People rarely die from this type of bladder cancer, it often recurs after treatment.
• High-grade bladder cancer also often recurs and has a higher chance of spreading to other parts of the body. Almost all deaths from bladder cancer result this type so it is treated more aggressively.

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What Is The Life Expectancy Without Agallbladder

If an individual has a gallbladder or doesnot, it hardly leaves any effect on life expectance. A few changes in yourregular meal are recommended to expand your life expectancy. Several smallmeals in a day, low fat, less oily, reduced dairy products along with processedfood will help in weight loss. An individual with a healthy weight can decreasethe risk of heart problems, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer.Consuming fewer calories in your daily diet also helps to strengthen our liverby allowing our body to easily digest the food and use energy even moreproductively.

When To See A Doctor

If youre having trouble peeing, you should see a doctor. This is not a symptom you should try to learn to live with.

If your bladder function has been compromised in any way, it could be a symptom of another underlying health problem. Dont wait a long time to address difficulty peeing. After 36 to 48 hours of symptoms, its time to seek a professional diagnosis.

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Bladder Cancer Stages And Survival Rates

Cancer survival rates are also categorized according to the stage of the cancer when it was diagnosed. The stage of cancer generally refers to how far it has progressed, and whether it has spread to other parts of the body. For bladder cancer, the 5-year survival rate for people with:2,3

• Bladder cancer in situ is around 96 percent
• Localized bladder cancer is around 70 percent
• Bladder cancer that has spread to the regional lymph nodes is 35 percent
• Distant or metastasized bladder cancer is 5 percent

If you would like to learn more about bladder cancer statistics, consider speaking with someone on your health care team. They will be able to explain more about how these statistics apply to your cancer. Tell us about your experience in the comments below, or with the community.

When Should I Call My Doctor

Let your doctor know if you think you may have an infection. Also tell them if:

• You have bleeding from the stoma that doesnât stop with a little pressure.
• You have pain, cramping, or swelling in your belly.
• Your pouch leaks regularly or doesnât stay in place.
• Your skin around the stoma keeps getting red or sore.
• The stoma turns dark purple, brown, or black.

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Removing The Whole Bladder

A radical cystectomy means taking out the whole bladder and the nearby lymph nodes.

In men, the surgeon also removes the prostate gland and glands that store semen . This is because bladder cancer can come back in this area. In women, the surgeon usually removes the womb and fallopian tubes. Sometimes the surgeon removes your ovaries and part of your vagina. Your surgeon talks this through with you beforehand.

You may also have part of your bowel removed. This is so your surgeon can create another way for your body to collect and pass urine. It’s called a recto sigmoid pouch. Your surgeon will discuss this with you beforehand if you’re having this operation.