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Urology (Expert Forum)
Father's frequent urinating/bowel movement
Questions in the Urology forum are answered by Dr. Stephen Liroff, affiliated with the Henry Ford Hospital. Topics covered include benign prostate disease, penis curvature, cystisis, kidney stones, pediatric urology, prostate, sexual dysfunction, urinary tract infections (UTI), and urological cancers.
Father's frequent urinating/bowel movement
by Grant-Calton, Jul 28, 1998 12:00AM
My father has suffered from polyps in his bladder for which he has received radiology and has now been given the all clear. He is now suffering from spasmodic bouts of very frequent urinating/incontinance. These bouts last from 7-10 days and seem to occurr a couple of times a month. Simultaneously he will suffer from bowel incontinance (for which he takes immodium). The urologists he has seen have been unable to pinpoint any cause and have only said that the radiology will have reduced the size of his bladder - however this seems odd as if that were the cause, one would imagine it would be a permanent condition. I would much apprecaite any thoughts on this as it is severely hampering my father's (age 73) lifestyle.
Thanks
Thanks
Doctor's Answer
by hfhs M.D.-AK, Jul 28, 1998 12:00AM
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Dear Grant,
From the limited amount of information I can gather from your question, I would say that your father has bladder cancer(polyps) and has undergone radiation therapy. Your question is difficult to answer because I don’t have the knowledge of what amount of radiation therapy he received. Typically, the common side effects from this type of therapy are;hematuria,blood in the urine, dysuria or painful irritative voiding, and diarrhea. Approximately 70% of patients experience some self-limiting acute side effects. This is evident in your fathers case with the irritative voiding symptoms(incontinence) and the diarrhea. The Literature does show that the actual capacity of the bladder shrinks, however, a local inflammatory reaction could also cause the lining of the bladder to be irritated giving the false sensation that the bladder is full. This may also lead to urgency and the need to urinate more frequently and immediately.
The advantages of radiation therapy in bladder cancer are preserving the bladder, maintaining a normal body image, and preserving sexual function if that is a consideration. Radiation may offer the possibility of local control without subjecting a patient to a large operation. I’m guessing that your father is a little older or has multiple medical problems due to the fact that he was given radiation therapy for his bladder cancer. He probably has some reduced function of both his urinary tract and bowels due his current medical condition. The radiation therapy may have temporarily caused him difficulty in each of these separate body systems which might resolve in time. Less than 10% of patients have severe persistent symptoms after radiation therapy.
I wish you and your father the best and I hope he is able to better adapt to his situation.
This information is provided is provided for general medical educational purposes only. Please consult your physician for diagnostic and treatment options pertaining to your specific medical condition. More individualized care is available at the Henry Ford Hospital and its satellites (1 800 653-6568).
Sincerely,
HFHS M.D.-AK
*Keyword: radiation cystitis
