Total Cystectomy

TOTAL CYSTECTOMY or a RADICAL CYSTECTOMY is a life-changing procedure that may have profound psychological impact on the patient. If the bladder is removed, surgeons will have to provide patients a different way to store and remove urine.

Bladder Reconstruction or Augmentation is performed at the same time as the Cystectomy and can be performed by using either of the following techniques:

• UROSTOMY : where a part of the small intestine acts as an Ileal Conduit for passing urine from the kidneys to outside the body, emptying into a plastic bag attached to the abdomen. 
• BLADDER AUGMENTATION : where a new bladder from a segment of the Small Intestine. This allows patients to store a lot of urine in their bladder. It is usually used for patients that have neurologic injury or disease that has caused the bladder to shrink and frequently spasm leading to leakage of urine.

In this surgery the bladder volume is increased with a U of small bowel or intestine,that is opened and made into a rectangle. The rectangle is sewn to the bladder and increases its volume dramatically. In this surgery a separate catheterization channel is not created and patients still catheterize their urethra. The procedure is called CUTANEOUS CATHETERIZABLE ILEOCECOCYTOPLASTY.

 After CYSTECTOMY, patients will be hospitalized for 7 to 10 days and be able to return to normal activities in 4 to 6 weeks.

 Recovery is based on the patients' age and general health. Quicker recovery is associated with younger, healthier patients.