Spring is here!
Hi everyone,
Blossoms are appearing, animals are excited and we all start to look forward to more warmth after winter.
Our work towards bladder cancer awareness, early detection and a reduction in mortality continues. Still, more than 1/3 of people who are diagnosed with bladder cancer die. It’s too much!
Please donate. www.bladdercancer.org.au/donations
UroGP in Melbourne
Almost 400 medical professionals convened at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre on Saturday, to improve their skills, at the UroGP Symposium. Led by Australia’s top urologists – Professors Nathan Lawrentschuk & Damien Bolton – attendees heard informative sessions about all things new in the world of urology. This annual event is vital to keep GPs and all medical professionals who deal with urological issues, up to speed. Our charity exhibited and supported the event with free brochures, booklets and a guitar giveaway. https://urogp.com.au/
Guitar winner!
Presented by Tony Moore, charity co-founder
Congratulations to Mary Sarmiento for winning our raffle!
Facebook Patient-to-patient support
As anyone facing health issues knows, talking to someone who has been through an illness is a great resource for a new patient. For Bladder Cancer in Australia, we are big fans of this patient-to-patientsupport group.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/bladdercancersupportaustralia.
For urology professionals dealing with Bladder cancer, please bookmark this page and share with your bladder cancer patients.
Procedure Guides
For patients about to undergo cystoscopy, BCG, TURBT, Cystectomy etc our procedure guides have become an invaluable tool for many. They are FREE to download. https://www.bladdercancer.org.au/patient-procedure-guides/
If you have a practice, we can send you a full colour set. Email us: contact@bladdercancer.org.au
ANZUP 2024
Held on the Gold Coast this year, between July 21-23. This dynamic event provided a platform for discussing and presenting the latest advancements in GU cancer treatment, research, and supportive care.
We were honoured to host 96 national speakers who contributed to a variety of sessions, reflecting the diversity of ANZUP’s membership, which now exceeds 2,400 members.
#ANZUP24 ASM set a new record with an attendance of 485 delegates and received 84 abstract submissions. This impressive turnout highlights ANZUP’s reputation for delivering high-quality, academically rigorous, and entertaining ASMs.
Geoff Goodfellow
Noted author and poet Geoff Goodfellow is a bladder cancer survivor. Here is his somewhat comical poem on the subject. You can visit his site here: https://www.geoffgoodfellow.com/
Everything & Nothing
Until i broached the subject –
most male friends of my vintage
had never spoken of having a camera
inserted down the penis
yet as i opened up –
most of them had a story too
when my urologist discussed this
procedure with me over the phone
i was seated at my kitchen table
thinking about the 35mm Minolta
Dynax 3xi camera sitting in the dresser
drawer i was facing
my equipment is not that large
i quipped
he put my mind at ease then
talking about the application of
numbing gel & advising me of the slender
camera head & the attachments
it possessed
at 10.00am today i had my third experience
the first was under a general anaesthetic
& i knew nothing
my second was under a local & on that
particular afternoon i knew everything
viewing my bladder cancer on a TV
monitor in full technicolour
& squealing two quick successive
sharp screams after the operator asked
can you wiggle your toes for me please
as a child of the sixties i had imagined
a six inch black & white screen crackling
away in the theatre
but the screen was as large as my
home TV & the colour & clarity
even clearer
the bladder background was silver grey
& sat in sharp contrast to the cancer
which appeared to be nipple pink
& for a moment –
reminded me of a girlfriend of twenty
years gone by
today i entered theatre in my sky blue
gown wearing a red cap to signal staff
of my allergic reaction to tetanus toxoid
the room was cold & chilly & i was
covered in a warmed blanket to comfort me
when transferred to the table
there must have been at least a dozen
people in the room
doctors
nurses
anaesthetists
machine operators
registrars
medical students
the room as chatty & chirpy as my favourite cafe
the consultant stood out he was a large man
& sat on the sidelines seeming to survey
the room like a huge smiling Buddha
while the jelco was driven into the back
of my left hand by an anaesthetist
a doctor on my right side looked me
in the eyes her colleagues peering
over her shoulders as she stated
can you tell me Geoffrey –
in your own words –
what we are going to do to you today
there was tension & silence for a moment
& then i spoke
you are going to amputate my right arm
at the elbow
laughter soon filled the room
when it subsided i spoke once again
you are going down my penis with a camera
you are going to take a biopsy sample
& then cauterise the cancer
you are then going to give me chemo
in the bladder which i will later expel in my wee
she nodded in agreement
i’m ready i told her
& the gas mask was pressed home . . . held fast against my cheeks.
Best Regards to all from the BladderCancer.org.au team.