Bad cystitis or kidney stone
 

I have not been feeling well , alot of back pain and pressure when I urinate. It feels like when your baby is sitting on your bladder,(all you mothers can relate) I got my urine checked today and full field red blood cells. Of course i'm freaking out because my grandmother had bladder cancer. My dr. thinks it's cystitis or kidney stone. I've had 3 bad uti's since chemo. Never had any trouble before. Has anyone else had this trouble? I might have to have a ct scan to see if i have a stone

Michele...
 

I hope that WHATEVER it is is easily and quickly corrected. Take care and God Bless.

Rhonda

Dear Michele,
I had severe cystitis while on Taxol but don't remember any back pain that was partiuclarly associated to that. the pain was mainly lower right large intestine area. I was eventually - after complaining for weeks - given some horrible stuff to take morning and night and after a couple of weeks it went away. I was also shown a massage technic for the intestine. You start from the lower right pressing hard and not lifting your hand off, continue up along the outside of your front to the waist area and then across to the left to the left side, down to the hip bone and down.
Hope it proves out to be a cystitis and not anything more painful or important.
Don't you hate the waiting!
good luck
sarah

I haven't had kidney stones myself, but my daughter has had them twice. Once before she had a baby and the other after. She said she would rather have a baby instead of ever having kidney stones again. She did hurt in her back as well as her lower abs.

Hi Michelle


I had my first uti just about when you did. I have had 3 bad ones, all with blood in my urine. Both my PCP and onc say it is because I had my oophorectomy (I know you did too) and put myself into abrupt menopause. Unlike you, I am ER+ so I am taking Arimidex which depletes the estrogen even more. Lack of estrogen and the abruptness of menopause thins the vaginal tissue and the tissue of the bladder wall. The thinning of the tissues can cause bacteria to stick to the walls and cause the infections.

I had an infection in Nov 05, Jan 06 and Memorial day weekend. I was very hopeful I wouldn't get another one after January's (very bad - the worst one) because I really paid attention and started taking cranberry tablet supplements (2 with each meal), drank lots of water, peed before and after sex and washed after sex. I guess it kind of helped as it was almost 5 months in between infections versus only barely 2 months.

However, a stone can also be the cause of uti's as well so you really have to get it checked out (I never had any back pain - just the heaviness on the bladder and then the urgency to urinate and of course, the feeling of always having to go. Then the blood).

My onco says that it can take 2-3 years for the body to adjust to the abruptness of menopause. For me, I am just hoping that the Arimidex is really working to lower my estrogen to the min and then I can deal with the bladder problems if thats all it is.

Keep the faith.

Love, Becky

Becky,

It sounds like you are right. I thought of that too about the menapause being an issue. I think i need to start using my premarin cream. My dr. said i could use it sparingly. I'm feeling better on the antibiotic already. I hate the metal taste in the mouth from the antiobiotics

Hi ladies; I went through 3 bad bladder infections in 3 months, but these the year prior to being diagnosed with BC ('99). After finally getting rid of the bug causing the repeat infections, I took cranberry supplements regularly for a long time, and also acidophilus gel caps which I think also helps keep you from getting a yeast infection from the antibiotics. Hang in there, things will right themselves, I haven't had another bladder infection since.
Still taking the acidophilus daily, but no longer the cranberry supplements.

<3 Lolly

Hi Michele,
I had pain, pressure and visible blood in the urine 10/05, 1 year after finishing my chemo for breast cancer, and several months before beginning Herceptin. The event lasted for 12 hours. Saw the internist following day and given antibiotics for possible infection. A week later due to red blood cells still present in specimen, I was referred to my urologist (I had early stage bladder cancer 25 years ago) and he did a cystoscopy. The urologist couldn't see anything within the bladder and ordered a pelvic CT scan to rule out cancer elsewhere, which came back normal. It was quite a scare and roller coaster ride emotionally for a few weeks, but nothing obvious showed up. I haven't had any obvious symptoms since. Will see urologist again this fall.

Has your doctor referred you to an urologist? My bladder cancer happened when I was 32, which is unusual to happen at that age. After numerous urine tests over a 6-month period, I finally hooked up with my urologist and he did cystoscopy and found a very small tumor, which was malignant (low grade) and removed. At that time treatment wasn't even recommended, just the minor surgery and follow-up yearly cystoscopy. Smoking can be a cause, but I had quit smoking 10 years before at age 22, and only smoked for 4 years. I don't believe there is any connection between bladder or kidney cancer and breast cancer. Hope you get it checked out, especially if you are still having pain.

Just passing along my experience.
G.Ann
DX 2/04 - invasive ductal, HER2+, ER/PR-, no node involvement (18 removed), 2.5 cm tumor, stage 2, grade 3 tumor; followed by chemo and now on Herceptin.

Just a word of warning about cranberry supplements and lymphoedema. I took cranberry and cured everything-cystitis and Lymphoedema -or so I thought!! I gradually came off the cranberry and my arm gradually increased in size!!! Took a while to bring it under control. I did read something on a website somewhere about it but have lost the info. Can anyone explain?

Annlyn

Michele,

I had repeated bladder infections during the past year on Herceptin and chem...the worst were with just Herceptin. I took the antibiotics each time and things cleared up. I think, for me, it is a side effect of Herceptin. It is listed as an infrequent side effect. I finshed my last Herceptin in June and have had no trouble since.

Peggy