Thursday and its oncology review day, after a crap night, when I got up for pain killers to help sleep, I get up early. There are cars that need to be moved so the builder badgers can receive a load of building materials to finish off the patio and the driveway. Having moved the cars I make the badgers coffee and then I have a breakfast of muesli in the hope that it will settle my stomach. With the basics out of the way I check back through the blog to be sure about the dates of my recent antibiotic interludes and re read the urology report. All of this in readiness for the telephone appointment with the oncologist somewhere between 9:20 and 11:20. I know my arithmetic is good but I’m getting worse in terms of life quality and I want to know why they did not pickup on the bladder stone and the possible connection to my Hematuria. So with my ducks in a row I start to draft todays blog while I sit and wait for “He who made a pact with the devil ” or one of his minions to ring me. That’s when the arm wrestle will begin, except there will an oncological shrug of the shoulders, three more cycles of “chemo” prescribed and a promise to ring me in three months time. What else can they do? They could acknowledge the over sight of my bladder stone as a contributing factor to my Hematuria, but they won’t, I do not think they are big on candour. So I wait.
About 11 o’clock the phone rings and the voice of the oncologist says hello. I tell him exactly how I am and he express his regret, however as predicted my arithmetic is all good. We discuss the most probable cause of my hematuria, a cancer v bladder stone discussion. He does the equivalent of “not me gov” as he argues that it is most likely the the bladder stone because my arithmetic, in particular my PSA containment, is so good the bladder stone is the most likely cause. We agree for another three months of the “Chemo” and a call in three month. And that was it, as predicted.
I immediately ring the urology department and try and get an idea of how long I am going to have to wait for my surgery. No one can tell me. It all depends on a surgeon reviewing my case and putting me on surgery list for a particular date. Not until the surgeon has done this will they send me a letter with a date. There is no way of predicting how long this will take, so all I am expected to do is wait.
The rain is falling and the builder badgers leave to cut slabs to size in the dry of their depot. My partner finishes work for the day and we decide to go out for lunch but not before she gets wrapping paper for her brothers birthday present and has wrapped it. This done we go to our local garden centre for lunch. It is pleasant enough but my back aches and I feel tired from the terrible nights sleep I had last night. To make it worse I think I am beginning to get an attack of painful pissing although there appears to be no blood. I drive my partner to her brothers house and we pop in to deliver his birthday present and have a chat. Its all very pleasant and its nice to chat to someone other than my partner and eldest daughter. When I get home I am desperate for the loo and its painful. I return to the draft blog but I am soon interrupted by my bladder demanding an emptying. I obey and find it painful so without hesitation I down a co-codamol and continue with the blog, whilst drinking copious amounts of water. This could be a long backend of an afternoon and evening. As the evening goes on its clear that I am having another bladder stone attack. It going to be along night and more co-codamol.
