Just got the Advance Sling

Hello. This is my first time posting to this forum though I have been lurking for a while. I have recently had an advance sling put in and I would like to share the experiences I've had since undergoing an RRP in Sept 2005 , what led to my decision to have the sling put in and how things are going to-date. First of all, I want to apologize for not having all the details of my DX to share with you but I will make it a point to get them on my next visit to my uro. I was first diagnosed in 2005 and had it confirmed by Roswell Park Cancer Institute and Johns Hopkins. I wanted to be sure. Although WW was offered as an option I chose the surgery. Who knows if that was the best decision! At any rate, the surgery went well and recuperation was as uneventful as it could be. Although there was partial nerve sparing Ed has been a problem, but that's another story. You all know how that is. The incontinence is the issue here. I was a Letter Carrier at the time, walking the beat, and somehow I thought that that exercise would work in my favor in overcoming incontinence. Not so! While I was working I was going through 3-4 pads a day. I was using the heavy duty Depends Guards. I retired shortly shortly thereafter and I faithfully did my Kegels. At times I saw improvement, was able to go down to using lighter feminine pads but then it would worsen again. I went through Pelvic Floor rehab and Biofeedback training(some fun!) but nothing seemed to help. I was back to 2 or 3 Depends a day again. Although, when you think about it , in the grand scheme of things, this is not the worst that can happen to anyone but I was getting tired of it! Always making sure I had an extra pad in my back pocket in case of emergency, worrying about leaking at the worst possible time and the possibility of odor. Although I am widowed, I do have a very understanding girl friend and that is another consideration. ED limits our activities but not our intimacy. Lying down does give me a lot of control but any sudden movement causes the dreaded leak! So I have to wear a pad when I'm with her and that bothered the hell out of me. So I started to investigate the sling that I had read about. I figured that if there was any way out of this there was no reason I should put up with this any longer. I went through the testing and my URO recommended a surgeon who had much success with the Advance sling. I had the surgery April 1st (how's that for optimism!) and let me tell you I don't know why I waited so long! So far I am completely dry. That's the good news. Great news! That's not to say it's a piece of cake. There's quite a bit of post-op pain involved. The recuperation is not that easy, but with the help of pain meds it's endurable. It's much better now and I'm sure that in a week or two it will be completely gone. As far as peeing is concerned, there's a learning curve that I'm going through. Right now, and this might change, I have a hard time going when I get up in the morning for some reason. That's when you know you have to go but I just can't seem to get it going more than a few drops either sitting down or standing up. I have to put up with the discomfort till I've moved around a bit and then I'm able to go. I find it a little more difficult to empty my bladder to the point that I feel I am completely done. At times I have to muscle it out! But other than that I have complete control all day, don't wear any pads and am happy. I see my surgeon Wednesday for what I think will be my final post-op and I'll discuss these points with him. I'll let you know how things are then. I hope this is or will be helpful to some of you.

Regards and good luck to you all,

Frank

Thanks you for sharing that story. I'm sure several people on this forum will benefit from it. I am glad that it's working for you

Frank, welcome and thanks for sharing your story with us. Keep us updated on your journey as you travel along..

Hello Frank,

I was pleased to learn that your AdVance sling is working so well for you.

I was implanted with a Coloplast Virtue sling last July without my consent. I had consented to an AdVance or a sling of the AdVance design.

The Virtue sling made my incontinence MUCH worse and the pelvic pain was continuous and absolutely intolerable. Narcotic pain killers were of little help. Neither was my surgeon or Coloplast.

I was finally able to have the Virtue sling surgically removed during a 3 1/2 hour surgery by a pelvic reconstruction specialist at The Cleveland Clinic last December. Near the completion of the removal surgery, the surgeon implanted an AdVance sling.

The results have been nothing short of fantastic! I am 100% dry for the first time in 10 years. My urinating is almost natural and the numbness and pain, which I suspect is nerve damage from the Virtue sling trauma, is slowly improving.

My suggestion, to those that are considering sling surgery, is do your research. Then choose your device and surgeon very carefully.

Best regards,

John

Frank,

Nice to hear your story and results. We all learn a little each time someone shares their experience. My sling surgery did not prove to be successful but I have some comments that may be useful. The first couple of weeks I was pretty dry and I also had a little trouble going first thing in the am. For some reason everything seems to slow down when sleeping and laying motionless. As time went on (I am now 12 weeks post sling surgery) I found that going was much easier and did not have to force with muscles to get it out. I suspect that the swelling from surgery had something to do with this....things are a bit crowded from the swelling and I think that may influence things a bit. Perhaps you will also find that to be true if you still have some swelling.

Even though I am now about back to where I started using 2-4 pads a day I still find that when I get up occasionally during the night I may have to push a bit to empty completely. This is again where I get the "opinion" that the sleeping non activity influences how the "flow goes".

Keep us updated on your progress. Perhaps consider posting a weekly progress report. I did that and it seems to have been useful to some of the guys considering sling surgery.

Good luck and it appears you are headed for success.

Sorry it took me so long to get back to get back to you guys. First the good news... so far I'm completely dry. I'm a big boy now, no more diapers! Not to be too crude, but it's nice to be free and loose again, (you know what I mean?) I'm optimistic that it will last. Peeing is almost normal. The stream isn't as strong as normal but not bad at all. It kind of reminds me of what it was like before the initial prostate surgery! I'm able to control myself completely when I have an apparently full bladder and a strong urge until I can get to the john. I'm about 90% through my recuperation now I think. The discomfort is just about gone. For the sake of any of you who are thinking of having the sling put in or if you have had it done recently , I'd like to tell you my experience so you'll have an idea what to expect. The surgery was at 7am , general anesthesia. I was out of recovery later that morning, not sure what time with a catheter in place, feeling groggy but not too bad. Pain meds! The Dr. said everything went well and I could go home after they took the catheter out and I was able to pee on my own. Otherwise I would have to have the catheter put back in for a while!Here's where you want to be careful! Later that afternoon the catheter came out and I waited. I wasn't able to pee for awhile and I was getting anxious. I really wanted to get home. I finally was able to coax a little out and convince myself and the nurse that things were starting to work. I really think she was relieved. She was a young nurse and I have a feeling she wasn't too anxious too put the catheter back in. So she took my word for it and I went home. To make a long story short, I had to call my doctor at 8pm because I had not peed at all and it was VERY painful. Sitting down, standing up, water running, even sitting in a warm bath...nothing helped. I was told to go to the ER or a local Ambulatory care center. I chose the Ambulatory Care center because I could imagine what the ER would be like at 9pm on a Friday night! My doctor called ahead and the good people there took me right away and put another catheter in. about 1200cc's later you can't imagine how good it felt. I love catheters. So this was Friday and I went back to the doctor Tuesday. They took the catheter out and filled my bladder with saline( I guess) to see if I was able to pass it ok. It wasn't easy but I was able to do it. The moral of this story is, don't be in too much of a rush! Make sure everything is working before you leave the hospital. That was painful and scary!
Listen guys, I'm terrible at composing these things and it's taken me a while. I'd like to pass on what this last month has been like as far as what the progress was, and I will on my next post. I hope this has been interesting and helpful to someone. I'll talk to you next time but now I have to go see my girlfriend! ( I'd like to talk to some of you about the cursed ED!)

Best of luck to you all!

Frank

Frank,
Welcome to the crew. I am watching the various sling posts, as I am 6 moths post-DaVinci, and not as close to dry as I would hope to be. Not even close to an evaluation, much less a decision, but posts like yours are of great help.

John,

Your post was very encouraging. Things are going great for me now but the fear in the back of my mind is "will it last?". Some of the guys here report that after a few months they are back to where they started! You helped put my mind at ease. Thanks

Continued Good Luck

Frank

John,

I'm just hitting 6 weeks so I hope I'm not getting my hopes up too high. I hope someday soon to be confident enough to get rid of the supply of pads I built up! Still waiting for the discomfort to go down although there has been a lot of progress there. You're right! It is great to be dry. You take something so fundamental for granted until it's gone. Right now I'm almost giddy with joy. With time , I know the novelty will pass but I know I won't take it for granted again.

Keep me up to date on how you're doing, as will I.

Good luck Brother

Frank

GPops, it's been a year since you last posted. How have you been?