The "CanPee" Club.

Hi Alan - Absolutely! Well said. Same to you.

Dave

Hello, Lester:

I have been involved with this forum for almost a year and a half. That is when I first posted my experience with the Simple Robotic Prostatectomy (SRP). I had just recovered from the procedure and wanted to share with other men because I was very pleased with the results AND there were not other men sharing this procedure from what I could see. What I have noticed over this time is that you do not see much about this procedure because it is "invasive" and most men (taking a risk here) would rather take a less invasive route. "Invasiveness" does not sit well with most men and it seems to never be the first choice. It was my first and only choice based on four things: 1) my prostate measured 265g, 2) I prefer to fix problems and not treat symptoms (personal choice), 3) preserving the bladder neck, sphincters, nerve bundles, and urethra were hugely important to me, and 4) I was not going to live my life on a catheter or using a catheter.

As for your questions:

1. How the SRP is performed? The procedure involves robotics with a skilled surgeon. 5-6 small incisions (1-3") are made in your abdomen as access ports for the robotics. The surgeon enters through these incisions and gets access to your bladder. The bladder is filleted opened to allow access to the prostate. The prostate is then accessed and carved out like an avocado. My 265g prostate was carved out in one piece and with precision. It measured 4"x4". You can even see how the doctor used robotics to carve around the urethra. If you want to see a picture of mine, private message me and I'll be glad to share. So, this one paragraph is where many might say - Heck No! - and go no further.
2. Where is it done? I am not sure. I assume this procedure is global, to some extinct, but not necessarily available every where. I had mine done at one of the top 2% cancer centers in the U.S. (no, I do not have cancer).
3. Who is eligible? I am not sure. Based on my prostate size, I was a great candidate.
4. Is it covered by insurance? Mine was 100% covered over two separate insurances that I have. Not sure how it works with just one.
5. Is it an approved procedure? I am not sure who the approving authority is, but again, mine was performed at an educational medical center by highly qualified urology surgeons.

I hope this helps.

Dave

Some other fine details:

You are under anesthesia, in the operating room, tilted on your head (so other organs are out of the way), and the procedure can be any where from 2-4 hours long (mine was 4-hours long).

I was released from the hospital 24 hours later. On catheter/foley for 10-days so the bladder could heal, and took nothing more than Tylenol & Motrin to control pain. Pain was only from my midsection. No pain from the bladder it self. Walked every day, including the very next morning.

10-days later, had a test to make sure the bladder was not leaking (it was not), and the catheter was removed. I have been on my own every since and do not take any medication of any kind. The strength and volume of my flow is amazing. I still hit the water on purpose to hear the sound. Empty full bladder in 3-5 seconds. Do not get up at night. Drink whatever I want all the way up to bedtime, and then take a glass of water and set it on my night stand when I go to bed and drink it as soon as I wake up.

Had the procedure when I was 61 years old.

Dave

I have not seen anyone else commenting that they had this procedure and their satisfaction or disatisfaction.

Hi Lester - I hear you, but I invite you to put it into perspective. Many men take the less invasive routes and come here asking questions about BPH symptoms, meds, beads, bands, etc., and then grieve with less than satisfactory results, or share their suffering and disappointments. Me and Feral (so far) are sharing the less visited "dark side" and saying from firsthand experiences that we are satisfied. I know, it is a contrast to the norm on this forum, but we hope it helps others as they are deliberating their own situation and options.

Dave

You could also say the same about FLA but now look at the "K Club" after people became informed. You can think of Davecanpee as the "John Allen" of the RSP procedure.

Hi Howie,

do you mind if I ask what age you are. How is it all working now for you.?

I had Turp in June 2019. I had to cic before the OP & for 6 weeks afterwards as it did not appear to have worked. I think my bladder was (maybe still is, somewhat) compromised. However ! over the last six months things have improved and I now pee naturally.

Not always great, but feels so much better than before my OP`. I was in virtual total retention.

I'm similar to your experiences, in some respects. I'm 69. I've had two instances, many many years ago of just bleeding. Not blood in urine. Just blood. Had cystoscopies after both (old style -- metal rods inserted). Then the rising size of the prostate as well as the PSA that went up to 4.5 and getting a biopsy (negative) followed by a rise in PSA to 9.5 and then a sudden drop to 3.5. Since this whole thing started in October, I've been continuously diagnosed with UTIs. Unlike you, I decided NOT to CIC and stayed with Foley catheters from November 3rd (?) through January 27th, 2020. So, far, I'm still bleeding but that is expected, I have that burning pain when I pee and I still have urgent issues (slight incontinence) and frequent urges but that isn't new either. The bladder spasms, it would seem predated any of the recent issues, if I get this right. So, I didn't think any prostate repairs would solve those. Got a note today from urology that they want to do another culture to check for infection. The last bacteria they found: I looked it up and its mostly antibiotic resistant so their giving me a week here and there of CIPRO probably wasn't cutting it. I'll see what they come up with. To their credit, they tried to convince me to CIC while waiting for the TURP surgery but, as I've mentioned, I elected to stay with the Foley catheters. My total retention got me one emergency ambulance ride to the ER. Can't drive when you can't pee at all.

I wish you the very best Howie, it is difficult to know what to do for the best at times. I have no knowledge of infections, apart from having two over the last year. So not bad I suppose. Never had any previous to that.

Personally , some weeks it feels like Im really on the mend. Others, such as this week, I get worried. It has turned bitterly cold here in the UK and I do think that doesnt help symptoms. I sometimes have to void three times. Then other times I visit the bathroom two or three times in an hour.

The better times are when I pee, maybe once/twice and do not have to visit the bathroom again for four hours or so. I usually sleep pretty good.

It feels like my bladder works better when really full (within reason, say 350ml). As if once it starts to empty it has some momentum behind it.

Thank you. For what its worth, today is 3 weeks post-operation. The bleeding subsides, somewhat, then picks up for one or two pees, then back. Not seeing much in the way of clots. Good? bad? I have no idea. Like you, I can go a while without having to urinate or I can go three times in 15 minutes. It just varies. Since I have bladder spasms, it's not always easy getting to the porcelain throne quickly enough so I'm still doing a bit of laundry and bathroom cleaning. More than I'd like but its getting better considering only three weeks out. At least I can see the improvement. I've taken to using male adult diapers, as planned with the doctor beforehand. That way, any accidents are minimal. And, most of what they catch is spotting of blood which, if you think about is, is a separate thing from urine. So far, though. Nothing insurmountable.

Hi Feral - Good to hear from you and that you are doing great. I just got up after a night of sleeping for 8-hours straight, never waking up to go to the bathroom. My wife says I must have to pee. So I get up, go to the toilet, and let the fire hose go. Within seconds I have completely voided. I raise my hands like I just won an event and yell - DONE! I am 18-months post my Simple Robotic Prostatectomy (SRP) and still amazed. Like you, my new normal causes me to forget life as a BPH sufferer.

Well Feral, there are a couple other guys that are getting ready to do what we did. As you said, what we did might not be right for everyone, but it was right for us, and it solved our BPH problem. You have to love those oncology urology surgeons.

We are a minority from all the options, but hopefully coming here and sharing our Simple Robotic Prostatectomy (SRP) experiences, we can help others understand it.

Dave

Thanks for posting your experience with RSP. I too am considering it but worry about the long anasthesia. Could you elaborate a bit more on the problems you had with it?

I am also surprised that your insurance would not cover Holep which is a much more established procedure than RSP for BPH.

All the best

Howard

In 2007 I had an accident that shattered my right humerus. Difficult operation and various more operations to revise the hardware, around the 12th or 13th operation I still had a non-union about 3 inches up from the joint acting like a second elbow, not fun. I had anther surgeon purported to be the best go in to "fix" the problem, which he did but while in there cut my radial nerve so my hand quit working. Then to a hand surgeon who did a hand tendon transfer, doing several operations to get my hand working. Each of these operations was full anesthesia with the only side effect of some weird dreams that lasted for several nights.

So for the SRP operation It was just another anesthesia event except this time I had post operative digestive shutdown, ileus. They put a tube trough my nose into my stomach for about 4 days. That was very difficult and painful. Not a function of the type of surgery.

My Medicare Supplemental Insurance would not pay for an out of state operation, while straight Medicare most likely would have.

Quite a story! I hope you are finally able to put all these operations behind you. I had a bad fall 2 days ago on the ice and had an ambulance ride to the hospital. The fear was that I broke my hip and wrist but x-rays showed no breaks thankfully. It is scary how fast a life-changing accident can happen - right in your own front yard. Good luck to you. Howard