3rd BCG Maintenance Series Has Begun - September 11, 2009

First off, compared to things that happened on September 11, 2001, today and yesterday are nothing. But we go to our fates with BCG voluntarily, and it is certainly true to say that Bladder Cancer is not for wimps!

The trip to the doctor's office and the instillation details were uneventful, getting the BCG at 10:00 despite a 9:15 appointment. Did the usual sipping and flipping in the back of the Honda Pilot on the way home. A day later I feel as if I had a game of tackle football yesterday, a bit stiff and sore around the midsection and mid to lower back today. Brain is a bit foggy, but not awful. This time will be the same dosages as last time, but a major difference is 6 months in between instead of 3 months. And so the body and bladder are in much better shape (despite cystoscopies in May and last week). And perhaps my bladder had "forgotten" about BCG and how to handle it. I fabricated a subjective "misery index" to help compare each time, and I hope it might help to explain how things feel. The scale-up duration is measured from the onset of symptoms to the peak, after which it tapers off. Total duration is from the onset of urinary symptoms until urination is clear and relatively free of discomfort (though body aches generally continue for 6-12 more hours).
LAST TIME
Series 2 (1 of 3) Misery scale-up duration 2.25 hours, peak 4/10, total duration 19 hours
Series 2 (2 of 3) Misery scale-up duration 15 Minutes, peak 1.5/10, total duration 11 hours
Series 2 (3 of 3) Misery scale-up duration 1.5 hours, peak 2/10, total duration 11 hours

So yesterday was pretty much in the family, albeit the peak symptoms lasted longer, and it took longer for symptoms to begin - 5 hours instead of 3, making for a very long day and night.
THIS TIME
Series 3 (1 of 3) Misery scale-up duration 1.5 hours, peak 2/10, total duration 14 hours

One fact is crystal clear for me - the reduced dosage of 1/3 is far less miserable than any higher dosage.

You can see the comparison of Series #1 and Series #2 below:

Click to Enlarge

And you can also see a comparison between Series 2 and Series 3 so far...

(click to enlarge)

I am also collecting the (not too gory) details on the Series 3 Backup Page as progress continues (4/10 on the grossout scale).