@x: "With a lot of helpful input from this group + Walsh and 2 other good books, 
I opted for Robotic RP with Dr. Ash Tewari at Weil Cornell Columbia 
Presbyterian in New York City. He and his team are impressive: sharp, caring 
and apparently superbly competent. After a day of recovery in the hospital, 
I walked a mile and a half the first day home, yesterday four miles, today I 
walked 3 miles this morning and will do another three tonight. The hour-long 
ride home by car from the hospital was quite painful because of potholes and 
the like, and for the two days since my return home, abdominal gas from the 
surgery has pushed painfully on my stitches. I also find coughing quite 
painful and seem to lose quite a bit of scarlet fluid (over 100 ml every 
couple of hours) through a drainage tube in my abdomen, but despite these 
concerns, my recovery is much better and faster than I expected.  In 
addition to the competence of the Tewari Team, my wonderfully supportive and 
helpful family have contributed substantially to this outcome.
The catheter is a nuisance, but not really painful (yet?). I swab my meatus 
every few hours with lidocaine(sp?) which seems to minimize chaffing.
Of course, we have yet to see what will happen in the continence, potency 
and strictures department, but rapid progress to date makes me hopeful about 
those areas as well.
Dr. Tewari said my cancer was quite close to the rectum. He believes my 
margins were clear, but because it was so close, he is awaiting the final 
pathology report in about a week for confirmation of that assessment. He did 
say that he was able to spare both nerve bundles. Alleluia!
So, I thank God, the Tewari Team and my great family that I have plenty of 
reason for hope at this stage. "
    @Gimel: "Sounds great Michael.
I'll just add...along with using lidocaine on the meatus (which just
'numbs' any irritation)...I'd use something like bacitracin or other
antibiotic ointment often to lubricate the cath so it doesn't rub any
more than it needs to.
When I got home...I walked a lot the first day and the meatus was sore
for a while after that.
Don't want THAT.  :-)
Continued healing,
Ron B.
Chicago"
    @Gimel: "Ross noted:
"Definitely need something - my urethral meatus definitely doesn't like
being banged around. I don't have access to any objective evidence, so I
hope I'm not promulgating a hospital-urban myth, but a jelly or cream
might be safer even if shorter acting."
Since they're currently using bacitracin and other Ab oints to lube the
meatus...I gotta think that most cath materials are OK with it.
Certainly, if they were NOT...water based products (though short acting)
would be the way to go.
Ron B.
Chicago"
    @Gogarty: "<email_address> says...
<quote>
I agree. I was forbidden to drive for six weeks, not because driving 
itself would cause problems but such things as emergency braking might. 
Takes awhile for those wounds to heal, and you only see what's on the 
outside.
Not being able to drive when one owns a car in New York City can get 
expensive. You can't park the car on the street and forget it."
    @poca_hontas5: "Michael,
I'm so glad to hear that your surgery went well and that you were happy
with Dr. Tewari and his team. I hope that your recovery continues to be a
fast and easy one.  Please post when you get the final path results.
Best of luck and warm regards,
Jennifer (and Jennifer's father)"
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