Thursday, March 13, 2008
Where Are The Research Dollars For Bladder Cancer?
Why is bladder cancer not receiving the research dollars for this very common disease? Is it the fault of the Government, the Cancer Society, or the manufacturers of Urostomy Supplies?
* When was the last time you heard about a marathon to benefit bladder cancer research?
* When was the last time you heard about bladder cancer week?
* When was the last time you heard anything on TV, newspapers, etc. about bladder cancer?
* When was the last time you heard about a break through in bladder cancer research?
Get my point?
In my opinion public attention to bladder cancer is sadly lacking. I am surprised that the Cancer Society has given so little attention to the area of cancer. I have tried to find information on any research project underway regarding bladder cancer. I could not find any. Surly some research is going on in this area of cancer.
I do feel that one of the reasons bladder cancer does not get the publicity that other types of cancer is that more males seem to develop bladder cancer than females. Most males hit by this disease want to keep it private. It is a against our manhood to talk about this disease.
The link to the pdf where I took the following quote is located below.
Bladder Cancer Statistics, 2006
• New Cases: 61,460; 44,690 M, 16,730 W
• 4:1 Men to Women; 50% over age 73
- Men: #4 Women: #9
• Estimated Deaths: 13,060
- Men: 8,990, #9 Women: 4,070
• Incidence/Mortality: 20.8%
- Men: 20% Women: 24%
• Prevalence: More than 500,000 in US
Do men go around talking publicly about their erectile dysfunction? How many males are going to tell others that they now require a pump, of some type, to obtain an erection for sexual intimacy? Alternatively, that they have to take a pill to get it up. No they don't. It is not manly to talk about these things publicly.
Are males their worst own enemies? Yes. We should be more vocal about our bladder cancer. This really is the only way that we are going to get the attention needed to obtain our share of the cancer research dollars.
Does there need to be more research into bladder cancer? YES.
There has been a great improvement in the surgical technique in doing Radical Cystectomy.
HOWEVER, do you realize that the technique to collect the urine from the stoma into a bag of some type is from in the early 1920s? Nothing has changed since then.
Yes, there has been improvements made in the glues and barriers by the different manufacturing companies over the years. This has made the wearing of Urostomy pouches easier and more comfortable.
Nevertheless, when a patient walks around for years with a bag glued to their abdomen, problems are going to develop. I can certainly attest to this. I have survived for eight years since my stoma was constructed.
During the past two years, I have noticed that I am having more and more problems with my skin under the Urostomy pouch. It is not natural to have the skin exposed to these chemicals for such a long period. The body starts to rebel. It almost appears that the researchers feel that the technique that is out there today will be sufficient since the patient is not going to live too long anyway. This might have been true twenty years ago but not today.
Gigantic improvements in Chemotherapy and in earlier diagnosis have lead to a longer prognosis. This now means that there is a greater chance that patients are going to survive longer.
The powers to be need to do some research into different methods, other than using a glue, to collect urine from the stoma for long-term patients. What these methods might be, I do not have a clue. I am not a Scientist.
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