For me, the shock, or my reaction, was perhaps a little less than the others when I learned I had prostate cancer, my father having been diagnosed at the age of 55. Nevertheless, at 53 years old and being particularly fit, I had to concentrate strongly when driving across the island of Montreal after hearing the famous word cancer. Back in my region, I made an appointment with a urologist, my choice of treatment having already been decided and discussed with my spouse.
The radical surgery (prostatectomy) was performed a month and a half later. The latter went well without any complications. To be honest, I had a lot of anticipation and fears before the operation. Small cut in the lower abdomen, two probes coming out of my body and small “buzz” of anesthesia, awaited me when I awoke. A few hours later, I walked down the hall and spent a total of three nights at the hospital. More fear than harm.
The psychological aspect after returning home was the most difficult part. The presence of the urinary catheter for 17 days is one thing, but the fact of being obliged to do nothing during the springtime of the year was for me a shock for my overactive person. Not being able to run with my dog or cleaning the yard was very difficult. After my urinary catheter was removed, it was the fear of incontinence. On the contrary, nothing came out during the first 4 hours following the withdrawal of the probe. I thought do not panic, drink water, relax and you will be fine.
I was back to work after a month (office). I noticed that every day, I was using less and less protective pads. After six weeks, my regular activities resumed. I was finally able to run with my dog. Still, there is a little incontinence especially when sneezing or playing sports. Being Zen helped me deal with this new temporary setting. Ah, I forgot to tell you that I did the Kegel exercises before and several weeks (8) after removing the catheter.
Finally, I cannot end this testimony without mentioning the promptness of our Quebec Health System. Exactly six weeks passed between my diagnosis and the operation. For me, everything went very well.
Take the time to visit each of our pages on this website, as well as our YouTube channel, in order to get familiar with the disease with our expert lectures, our section on available resources, the support that is offered to you.
Do you have any questions or concerns? Above all, do not hesitate. Contact us at 1 855 899-2873 to discuss with a nurse specializing in uro-oncology. It’s simple and free, like all our services.
Pages of our site that might interest you
Want to know more? Just click on one of the links below.
Am I at risk
Signs and symptoms
PROCURE news that may interest you
Each week, we publish a blog article. Here are a few for you.
Case stories: Réal, Jean-Michel and Louis
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Case stories: Laurent and Charles
Case stories: Jean-François and Michel
I was ready for anything except… Jean’s story
Written by PROCURE. © All rights reserved – 2020
