Action Bladder Cancer UK – Stories
This compilation of stories is intended to be helpful to cancer patients trying to make sense of their diagnosis or cancer journey. These stories can also be very powerful in helping to raise awareness of bladder cancer and highlight the urgent need for new treatments, research and support for those with bladder cancer.
Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network – Stories
The Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network is a USA-based organization. Their Bladder Cancer Story Campaign highlights the stories of those impacted by bladder cancer in an effort to raise awareness as we work towards a cure.
The author of this blog has been living with non-invasive bladder cancer since January of 2016. Since then, there have been several treatments and recurrences. The title of the blog was inspired by the city where the author lives – there are large expanses of concrete but you catch glimpses of sprayed messages and murals everywhere – not all-encompassing, but always somewhere. “The bladder cancer stays with me like graffiti on a newly painted wall.”
Blog for a Cure highlights blogs of bladder cancer patients. This creates a community where these patients can support each other. The blogs are sorted by diagnosis date, stage of cancer, and type of cancer. The ones above are for bladder cancer, but you can conduct a quick search and find blogs of any other cancer type.
In May 2015, Natalie was 37 when she was diagnosed with a disease usually seen in men over 50. She was married to the love of her life and had 4 wonderful children. By June, she discovered that her advanced bladder cancer had spread to her bones, and was in her pelvis. She passed away in December of 2017, but her husband still periodically updates her blog with updates about their family. She used this blog as a platform to raise awareness and provide support for people in similar situations.
Carrie was diagnosed with invasive bladder cancer in July 2013 at the age of 34. Since then, she has had surgery and chemotherapy. She is finally cancer-free, after having her uterus, ovaries, bladder, and part of her bowel removed. She has since focused on motherhood, started a business, and is happy to be alive, despite some of the challenges of cancer survivorship.
Cy Ball – Music – A blog about Music & Cancer
Cy is a retired computer software developer. In May 2011, he was diagnosed with carcinoid cancer. In April 2014, he received a diagnosis of bladder cancer. He is an enthusiastic fly fisherman and music producer. As of April 2019, he has been free of bladder cancer for 3 years, though he is still living with his carcinoid cancer. He documents all treatments and medical updates on his blog, as well as discussing his music.
Fight Bladder Cancer – Stories
Fight Bladder Cancer is a UK-based organization set up by bladder cancer patients and carers – they are a community working to make a difference. Reading the stories of other people who are living with bladder cancer can help us all to better understand this disease.
Steve Kelley began seeing symptoms of bladder cancer in February of 2008, and did not receive a diagnosis until the end of March. He was shocked, considering he had no family history and he was fairly young. He underwent surgery, immunotherapy, changed his diet, and began exercising, and he has been cancer-free for over 10 years now. He has been documenting his journey with bladder cancer since the start; his reach has spread beyond his own struggles and towards others who are also affected by bladder cancer.
Emily’s father was diagnosed with terminal bladder cancer at the end of 2016. He had his bladder removed in 2017, then developed bowel cancer in 2018 and had his bowel removed later that year. In August 2018, the doctors told her family there was nothing else they could do. He passed away in February of 2019. She uses her blog as a form of therapy, and as a way to connect with others going through similar situations, as she writes about life after losing a loved one to cancer.
Ken was diagnosed with bladder cancer in November of 2011. At the time, he was 49 years old, happily married with 4 children. He underwent chemotherapy for over 3 months, until the doctors discovered that his cancer had metastasized to several lymph nodes as well as his spine. He has been living with metastatic bladder cancer ever since. This is a journal of Ken’s battle with metastatic muscle invasive bladder cancer, chemotherapy, surgery, clinical trials and his complete response, and the joys and difficulties of life.
My Big Fat British Bladder Tumour
Anita Brown is a 48-year old wife and mother. She was diagnosed with terminal neuroendocrine bladder cancer in 2016. The cancer had spread to her lymph nodes, liver, hip, and the bones in her arm. After palliative chemotherapy and radiotherapy, she is NED (no evidence of disease) and with one less bladder than she started with.
He was diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2006. His blog was originally there to catalogue how it felt and what went on after diagnosis of bladder cancer, treatment, as well as his physical and mental state. He went through a life-changing illness which led him to leave his wife of 32 years and set up a home and business. As of March 2019, he has been cancer-free for 12 years. He hopes the early blog posts will be helpful for those affected by bladder cancer, and show them that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Paul was diagnosed with bladder cancer in November 2012 – He underwent 12 weeks of chemo starting in November 2012, had his bladder and prostate removed in January 2013, and was cancer-free by March of 2013. He has been NED (no evidence of disease) for over 6 years now, and tries to update his blog at least once a year (following his annual CAT scan).
Stuart Baker was diagnosed with stage II bladder cancer in July 2010. He underwent 3 months of chemo and had his bladder removed in November 2010. Shortly after his 6-year anniversary of being cancer-free, in March 2016, he was diagnosed with a basal cell carcinoma on his chest. He had surgery to remove it in April 2016 and has been cancer-free since then. This blog documents his journey through all the ups and downs of cancer.