Bladder Cancer Awareness Month — The Referral
Following up on results
You may find yourself back with your general practitioner after an ultra-sound, blood test, urine test or CT scan result with the Doctor suggesting to you that she/he would like to refer you to a urologist for follow-up.
If you are at this stage, you are in good hands. Your doctor has most likely concluded that they have seen something in your results that require follow-up by a specialist.
In my particular case, it was the result of a CT scan that showed something in my bladder. My doctor advised that it looked like it was “small” but that it would be best attended to be following up with a urologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.
Off to the Urologist
I was very fortunate to have been taken in under the care of Dr. Ron Kodama. After he reviewed the results from my initial CT scan, he suggested that I have a further examination that involved going up into the bladder so that he can have a look inside the bladder and see what was going on. This procedure is called a cystoscopy (more to come on that).
Advocate for Yourself
If you are at a stage where you have received results from your general practitioner and there is no further recommended action, you need to advocate for yourself. You might still have a symptom that you are feeling. Or, perhaps you have been advised to take an antibiotic to combat a possible urinary tract infection. If blood persists or other symptoms, take a stance to be referred to a urologist for further investigation and follow-up. YOU need to advocate for yourself to ensure that you have ruled out any further possibility of bladder cancer or other concerning issue internally.
Canadian Health Network and Bladder Cancer Canada
In Canada, we are so fortunate to have specialists in our institutions coast to coast to coast. Bladder Cancer is capably treated in centres across the nation.
For further support along your journey, you can also tap into the resources at Bladder Cancer Canada. In many instances we offer peer to peer patient support. These patients have “been there done that” and can help you with your decisions along your bladder cancer journey.
Wishing you well.
