I had my surgery today
I’m typing this post on my phone from my overnight hospital bed. Today was my Davinci robot-assisted RP, and I’m happy and relieved to finally have it over with. For those who are curious, those who may face this surgery themselves and for myself to remember while it’s still fresh in my mind, here are some of my experiences before and after the procedure:
- It was a damn long day, especially for my wife and son who waited for me at the hospital. We were up at 4:30a, check in at the hospital was 6a, prep was about 2 hours and the surgery itself lasted about 6 hours, which is quite a bit longer than it had been estimated. Per my doc, that was due to lots of scar tissue that came from three previous biopsies.
- Anesthesia is amazing. Six hours of surgery for me was like the blink of an eye. Took me a couple of hours in recovery to fully come out of it, though. And the sore throat afterwards from the ventilator (one of the things I was dreading) wasn’t very bad at all. That was a pleasant surprise. And I had no recollection at all of the vent itself, which went in and came out while I was under.
- I’ll find out more tomorrow and next week, but preliminary reports from my surgery team are that things looked pretty good. Lab reports should be available in about a week.
- Pain is really not that bad. The abdomen where the incisions are is sore, but not terribly so. Absolutely no pain internally around the groin, but the catheter, as expected, is awkward and can give you a jolt if moved the wrong way. Trying to sit up hurts. But I haven’t taken anything for pain other than a single Tylenol that my room nurse kind of forced on me. And I’ve been able to get out of bed twice so far, last time for five laps around the nurses station.
- Having my phone with me has been a godsend, sending and receiving texts with friends and relatives keeps the spirits up and helps pass the time.
That’s all I’ve got for now. If you have questions or comments, I’d welcome them
Comments
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One more thing I forgot to include:
- During the surgery, they position you with your head lower than your feet. According to my surgeon, this helps the intestines slide away from the surgery site and makes things easier all around. However - and I’m guessing here - it also caused my always drippy sinuses to flood my ear canals. I could hardly hear anything for a couple of hours post-surgery.
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Bruce, I am happy you made it to the other side. It is good you are already walking. Don’t worry too much about reporting here as your family comes first right now. Keep up the great attitude and thanks for the detailed report of your experience. I am sure it will help all newbies to see what the experience is like. My best to you,
Jack
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I'm 10 days out RP, pulled catheter yesterday. I too had relatively little pain, no need for narcotics. One thing that did happen is I really didn't pass significant gas when I left hospital. The next day I had solid food. The gas got worse with bloating and that caused some serious pain as it moved around. Once I passed gas all was good. Everyday is improvement.
Good luck on recovery.
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Hey Bruce, Your story is exactly what I've been looking for from this group. I very please your experiences were reasonably tolerated and your attitude positive throughout. I'm facing a similar fate. I'm 74 , in good health and single. My CA is T1cNOMO and thus curable with RP. I was given the option of Davinci robot-assisted RP, which I chose. Now after a bx, MRI, fusion bx, bone scan, and a 3 doctor assessment panel of my diagnosis and tests, all since the first of the year, I have to wait for two months to meet with the surgeon before I can schedule the surgery. I just want the CA out of me, and the sooner the better.
Thanks Bruce for sharing your details, it helps to remove many of my own anxieties.
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Hi Yelbirts - Glad this was helpful for you, that was exactly what I was going for. Prior to my surgery, it was hard for me to find anything online that sketched out exactly what it would be like on the day of the operation. As a result, my anxiety level was sky-high in the days leading up to the RP. In hindsight, the things I was dreading -- anesthesia, the catheter, something going wrong, or pain afterwards -- were all not worth worrying about.
My bottom line now (and I hope it will be yours soon) is that the surgery teams doing this work are nearly always people who are incredibly well trained and experienced, they are completely focused in on making sure everything turns out OK. And it nearly always does. It did for me and I'm sure it will for you, too.
I'm now six weeks post-surgery and I feel pretty much like I did before my RP. All of my incisions have healed almost completely. I seems to me that my belly hangs out a bit more, like there might still be some swelling, but it could just be that I'm taking more notice of the gut that was always there. There is no soreness at all from the operation.
I also got off lucky when it comes to incontinence. I get a drip now and again -- especially if I've had a couple of glasses of wine -- and I'm wearing a pad in my drawers to catch these rare drops, but for the most part I'm able to hold and control urine just like before. But I will say that the week with the catheter after surgery was just no fun at all, pretty much as expected. It's the price to be paid, I guess. A week of Catheter Hell to get a lifetime without prostate cancer seems like a bargain to me.
I'm also back to playing golf. Played my first round in the fourth week after surgery (a few days before the actual date my Doc said I could start playing, don't let him know) and I've played twice a week since then. My game still sucks, but it doesn't feel like it has anything to do with my surgery.
Yelbirts (and anyone else who is facing a Radical Prostatectomy), I think my best wish for you is that you experience the same successful surgery and quick recovery that I've had. And if you have any questions about any of this or other aspects that I haven't addressed, just ask. Best of luck to you!
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Hi Bruce "A week of Catheter Hell to get a lifetime without prostate cancer seems like a bargain to me." Pretty much sums up my thoughts exactly. Your experience sharing has certainly lessened my fears. I'm really surprised that your experience in searching for a group of men with similar experiences (either pre or post)was very much like mine...crickets. Even my hospital's cancer patient advocate never returned my phone call. Fortunately, I have faith in my surgeon's training and skill, coupled with your "testimonial", my own concerns seem quite tolerable. Thanks again. If ever given the opportunity, I would like to "shake your hand". (Covid style)😁
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Glad to hear the good news. Hopefully this continues with your post op report. Good luck on your journey.
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Hi,
Glad you had such an easy surgery and recovery. I had my Prostate removed back in 2014 by a robot and have no regrets, I still test “undetectable”. I had no complications and you are right the catheter thing is the worst part. I too wear a light pad and probably will for the rest of my life. In my opinion a small price to pay to get the cancer thing behind me. I have never let the whole thing effect any part of my life style and do all the things that I did before my surgery. Good luck and hope for many more undetectable PSA readings in the future. Time for you to get on with life…………….
Dave 3+4
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How did you make the decision to get surgery over radiation?
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Hi Dan - It's been awhile since I've been back here, so I'll answer your question and also update things since the surgery. In short, everything so far has been about as good as possible and I remain incredibly grateful and pleased.
After my third biopsy, when it was obvious that *something* needed to be done, I talked to both a radiation oncologist and the surgeon who eventually performed my RP. Both of them were very reassuring and experienced (the radiation doc was older and more experienced than the surgeon) and I had no doubts that I'd be in capable hands with either of them. For me, the decision to go with surgery came down to wanting a "quick and clean" resolution. And, thankfully, that's what I got.
It's been nearly 18 months now since my surgery. My doc only wants to see me yearly now after two clean PSAs.
I'm one of the lucky ones who recovered with zero incontinence and full function. I am fully aware that others who traveled this road have not been this fortunate and I count my blessings daily. I travel and play golf and basically live my life as if the events of last year never happened. But I don't take my health for granted and I'm scrupulous about seeing all doctors and healthcare providers when needed. I survived a bout of Covid (with a rebound) last fall and I'm working out some knee problems, but overall things are good for going on 70.
My wish for anyone else facing a prostate cancer diagnosis that requires treatment is that you find a medical team that inspires your trust, and that you experience a full and successful recovery. Good luck everyone!
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Appreciate you taking
time to share with me
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Great success story.
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