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Advice of what to do next? Bladder and urethra have erythema

Hi guys, wanted to provide a quick history of what I’ve been going through and get advice on what you guys think I should do next. My issues started three and half years ago, I had a drop of blood after urination and frequency (going every 30 minutes), this lasted for couple weeks and went away. It happened again 2 and half years ago and lasted a month. It happened again last year and this time the issue never resolved. Spicy foods were aggravating my situation and by following an IC diet I was able to reduce my symptoms however it never went again.

I’ve been on three different antibiotics and am currently on levofloxcin. All antibiotics reduced some symptoms but pain, frequent urination, burning in the urethra would return if I ate anything troublesome. Lately my prostate feels inflamed like I have rock in my rectal area, this is more noticeable after a bowel movement or anytime I go urinate. Finding a competent urologist has been really difficult and I’ve gone through several (wasting months worth of time).

I finally found someone I think is very knowledgeable. He initially treated me with two antibiotics (levofloxcin being the last), did a dna test on urine after prostate massage (no bacteria found) and performed a cystoscopy. During the cystoscopy he went very close to something that looked red, I tired to ask what it was but he didn't say anything. The procedure took under a minute and after it I tried to ask what he had seen, he told me everything was normal and I needed to take some steroids for inflammation and stop using the antibiotics.

I’m on the steroids now and they have helped especially with the prostate inflammation (even though I still feel it). However after asking the nurse for records I read that he had written that I had patchy erythema in the balder and urethra. I’ve tried researching but found very little on this. Is this something I should be concerned about? I’m 42 years old, have had a cytology from my GP that was clear but the fact I’ve been in pain for 5 months now and have bladder and urethral erythema that doesn’t seem to be going away worries me. What would you guys do? Is there a reason he would not mention this to me? Does this sound like bladder cancer and should he have done a biopsy?

  1. Keith - I hope you are able to find some answers to your questions. I understand that it can be challenging to find medical providers who meet our expectations regarding communication, availability, openness etc. In my opinion a patient should not have to research questions that are not answered completely. Possibly a call to the office for more information is in order. I agree with always obtaining any and all records of appointments as it is easy to forget information or to find out more than you recall being provided. My best to you in getting the responses you need. Maybe reaching out to others with bladder cancer in your area to see who they use as medical providers would be an option. Good luck and please keep us updated. Linda ( moderator, author, Bladdercancer.net team member)

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