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Cystectomy is the surgical removal of all or part of the bladder. It is used to treat Bladder cancer that has spread into the bladder wall (stages II and III) or to treat cancer that has come back (recurred) following initial treatment. There are two types of cystectomy:
Preoperative testing may include CT scan of the pelvis, abdomen, and chest, as well as a barium enema or colonoscopy. Sometimes the doctor will also recommend a cardiac stress test before surgery.
Regional lymph nodes may be removed (lymphadenectomy) during cystectomy. Removing lymph nodes helps your doctor determine whether cancer is present in the lymph nodes and provides more accurate information about the stage of the cancer.
Cystectomy usually requires a hospital stay of at least 3 to 7 days. You can expect some discomfort during the first few days after surgery. This discomfort is usually controllable with home treatment and Medication. Complete Recovery usually takes 6 to 8 weeks.
Following surgery to remove the bladder, your surgeon will create a new channel for urine to pass from your body.
Additional treatment may be needed following a radical cystectomy and may include Radiation therapy or Chemotherapy. Biological therapy may be used after a partial cystectomy for early-stage tumors.
Follow-up for a partial cystectomy includes cystoscopy and urinary exams every 3 to 6 months for at least 2 years, with regular Ultrasound, intravenous pyelogram (IVP), or CT scans of the pelvis and abdomen.
Cystectomy is used to remove and attempt to cure cancer that has invaded the wall of the bladder or has come back (recurred) following initial treatment or has a high chance of spreading.
About 75% of people who have a cystectomy for bladder cancer in the muscle of the bladder are disease-free after 5 years. People with more deeply invasive bladder cancer have a 5-year survival rate of 30% to 50% after cystectomy.
Complications are common after a radical cystectomy and may include:
Cystectomy can also lead to erection problems if nerves are damaged during surgery.
What To Think About
You may donate your own Blood (autologous blood donation) to use during surgery if needed. If you choose to do this, start the donations several weeks before the surgery so that you have time to donate enough blood and rebuild your blood volume before surgery.
In the past, cystectomy done on men usually removed the nerves that control erections. Now nerve-sparing procedures may be used to avoid damaging the nerves that run alongside the prostate.
Historically, a woman's vagina was removed along with the bladder in a radical cystectomy, making sexual intercourse impossible. Surgeons now are able in many cases to spare or repair the vagina.
If the bladder is removed, the surgeon will create another way to collect urine. You may have a pouch inside your body (continent reservoir or continent diversion) or wear a bag outside your body (ileal conduit or noncontinent diversion).
Radiation therapy , Bowel Obstruction , Need to pass a , Bladder cancer , Chemotherapy , Medication , Ultrasound , Infection
