Cystoscopy is essential for review after bladder cancer electrodesiccation surgery. The doctor inserts the chopstick-thick examination mirror directly into the urethra, which can clearly observe the prostate and bladder mucosa to see if there is any tumor recurrence. It is generally required to check once every three months, and the longest should not be delayed beyond six months. If abnormalities are found, it may need to be cut again.
There is no substitute for cystoscopy, this is because the commonly used ultrasound examination is not sensitive enough, the tumor grows to more than 0.5 cm before it can be seen, and if the urine is not held enough during the examination, the bladder wall is not fully propped up and some positions are not clearly seen, the same is true for CT.
Cystoscopy is divided into two types: hard and soft, the most commonly used is hard, for a clearer and more comprehensive observation of the bladder wall, and if a suspected recurrence is found, a biopsy can also be taken directly; soft cystoscopy is thinner, so it is more flexible, but will be more expensive and suitable for patients with urinary tract strictures. With the development of painless cystoscopy, the examination does not cause much pain, so the soft scope, which was relatively painless, is now only used in special cases (such as urinary tract malformations).
Cystoscopy requires an outpatient appointment to be examined by the cystoscopist on duty on the day of the appointment, so it will not necessarily be your primary surgeon who will operate on you.
If a patient is going to have a painless cystoscopy, they will be hospitalized for 2-3 days, during which time the hospital will need to arrange for an operating room and will also evaluate the patient for anesthesia. During the patient’s hospital stay, urine cytology is also routinely done – the patient’s second bubble of urine (fresh urine) each morning undergoes a series of treatments that allow the doctor to detect the presence of tumor debris in the urine to aid in determining the disease status.
The patient can be discharged soon after the cystoscopy, and there is usually no blood in the urine. If there is painful urination or bleeding, you can also take some painkillers and antibiotics, but these need to be taken only when symptoms appear, and no advance prevention is needed.
As a side note, cystoscopy is an invasive test, so patients who have urinary tract infections need to postpone until after they recover.