New Treatment For Bladder Cancer

(NBC) -- Doctors are using new techniques with robots to help bladder cancer patients whose bladders have been removed. May Williamson, 61, has recovered fully after undergoing a revolutionary treatment for bladder cancer. She was diagnosed a week before her birthday when she noticed a subtle sign.

"Just some very pink bleeding when wiping after voiding in the toilet," she said. "It wasn't obvious in the toilet. No pain, felt fit as a fiddle." Wiliamson said her bladder was removed. "And of course with the removal of the bladder was a complete hysterectomy," Williamson said. "That would have been the next site probably that the tumor would have spread to."

With the help of robotic arms, Dr. Murugesan Manoharan of the University of Miami Jackson Memorial Hospital built a bladder using a piece of Williamson's intestine so she would not need an external bag. Manoharan is among the first surgeons in the country using the Da Vinci Robot to remove the diseased bladder and create a new one using a small section of bowel, leaving a bikini line scar. "Most of the patients are able to empty the bladder normally," Manoharan said. "They can stand up and pass urine or sit down and void. And most of the patients are quite happy." "It works, which is still mind-blowing to me that this organ that was part of the colon is now working as a bladder," Williamson said.

According to estimates from the American Cancer Society, more than 68,000 new cases of bladder cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. in 2008. One in four of those patients will need to have their bladders removed. Using the robot for reconstruction ensures a faster recovery.

"I'm at 10 weeks. I feel normal. I feel absolutely normal," Williamson said.

"Obviously, we cannot replace what God has given us. I would use the term it produces a near-normal bladder," Manoharan said. The surgery made it possible for Williamson to return to work as an emergency room nurse.