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My Journey In
A Nutshell ...
TOTAL
PROSTATE SIZE DOES MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE
Remember,
my prostate was actually *normal* in size. There
are two ways your prostate can enlarge (they don't
cover this adequately on the internet either):
-
The *total
mass* of your
prostate can increase ... like going from the size
of a walnut to something bigger, say a small plum.
Or your prostate can stay the same in its total
size, but can enlarge *on the inside*
and squeeze or pinch the urethra, causing the
increased pressure on the bladder .... this is what
happened to me. -
The symptoms are the same with either type of
prostate enlargement. To determine which kind
of enlargement you have is why doctors first do
the DRE ... (the digital rectal exam ... that
finger up your butt exam men know all so well!)
THE TREATMENT ISN'T TOO BAD AT ALL !!!
-
I was considering the microwave / heat type of
procedure, but my doctor told me that men whose
prostate had not enlarged in overall size
were not good candidates for that procedure because
they did not have very good results. He said
that the microwave procedure reduces the symptoms of
BPH by *killing cells / tissue* using heat.
When the overall size of the prostate had not
increased, he was worried that there could be
excessive damage to the prostate or surrounding
tissue. (again, talk with *your* doctor ...
this is what my doctor told me.)
-
Before my doctor was willing
to do ANY procedure, he wanted to look at the
urethra all the way into the bladder ... yep, he
wanted to do the endoscope up your penis routine!
Needless to say, I was a bit nervous just *thinking*
about it.
-
So the day came. I went into the exam room
(they do this in the doctor's office) took off my
clothes and laid down on the exam table. A
male nurse came in and took out a syringe!!!!
I said ..... "WHOA .. what are you going
to do with THAT?"
-
He said relax and took the plastic syringe only (no
needle) and filled it half full with a topical
anesthetic. Then he took the plastic tip of
the syringe and inserted is just ever so slightly
into the opening in the head of my penis .... and
gradually pushed the down on the plunger that moved
the anesthetic into my urethra.
-
In about 15 minutes, the doctor cam in and put the
endoscope in my urethra and ran it all the way into
my bladder.
-
He said that my bladder was free on any tumors and
looked good (this is one of the benefits of an
endoscope procedure ... the doc can *see exactly*
what's going on. He confirmed that I had
excess tissue in the urethra and recommended the
TURP.
-
Now, I was *awake* during this entire
procedure ... and it did not hurt a bit !!
So I thought that if it was this easy while I
was awake, the operation no longer worried me.
-
I had the TURP procedure and picked to have a spinal
(I was already unconscious when they did the spinal
... I did not like the idea of a big pipe down my
throat!
-
The surgery went fine and other than the
side-effects I described earlier, the operation was
not nearly as harsh as I imagined.
-
So ... do not be
afraid
of the TURP procedure !!
... It's not nearly as bad as you might be imagining
it to be and once you heal, you'll be symptom free
!!
Whatever
decision you make, please discuss the side-effects with
your attending physician. He or she will know much
better than I what is best for you.
Again, this
information is not offered as medical advice for you in
any way ... it is simply a description of my experience
provided for your information.
Best of Luck,
Lou Kertesz
While you are here, please visit our growing library of
articles on enlarged prostate conditions and associated
treatments.
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