James - Interview 16

Age at interview: 67

Age at diagnosis: 66

Brief Outline: After a circumcision James noticed a sore area on his penis, he was prescribed various creams over the next two years which were ineffective. A later biopsy in 2011 revealed he had penile cancer. James had surgery to remove the cancerous tissue.

Background: James is a married, white British male with three grown up children. James works as a full time electrician.

More about me...

Having problems passing urine James paid to see a consultant who performed a circumcision. Post operatively he noticed a sore patch on his penis for which he was treated topically. For a year he went for monthly check-ups and the creams seemed to be having no effect. He began to think that the check-ups were a waste of time so he missed an appointment - and was not offered another. When he ran out of cream he went to his GP who continued to prescribe it for a further twelve months. When James developed a urinary infection he went to a locum GP who prescribed antibiotics and after seeing the sore area referred him to a local hospital.

The hospital took a biopsy which confirmed a diagnosis of cancer. James was referred on to a Specialist Penile Cancer Centre where he was given the option of undergoing a course of radiotherapy or having the tissue surgically removed. He opted for surgical removal, left everything to the surgeon and just wanted everything to happen as quickly as possible. James said his coping strategy was to “blank my mind to things.” He had previously suffered from bowel cancer and found his experience of penile cancer to be much less traumatic.

Throughout this time James received help and support from his wife, sons and daughters. He chose not to tell anyone outside of the family about his condition. His surgery has affected both his urinary and sexual function, and although he hasn’t noticed any changes to his confidence or self-esteem he does suffer from bouts of anger.

James is currently being seen at the hospital every three months for check-ups and although has needed no additional medical or emotional support is comforted to know that such help is only a phone call away.
 
 

A GP suspected that James had a urinary tract infection and gave him antibiotics with which it could be treated.

And eventually I got a... waterworks infection. So I rang up the doctors and I couldn’t get in to see my doctor but I saw the nurse practitioner who prescribed some antibiotics. Which were... worked wonderfully. They saw the waterworks infection off. But within a fortnight it was back. Then I rang the doctors again and I still couldn’t see the, my doctor but I got a locum who was a young Indian doctor, who was quite switched on and on-the-ball. And he examined me and gave me a larger dose of the antibiotics to clear up the waterworks.

After a circumcision, James noticed a sore patch; this was treated with creams for a long time, then he had antibiotics for a urinary infection before finally being referred for a biopsy.

I first suspected something was wrong after the circumcising of the thing when I went back for the post-operative test, which the doctor noticed there’s something there when he was examining me. From there he sent me to a friend who was a consultant, another doctor who saw me and interviewed me and prescribed some steroid creams probably to ease it or kill off, a little bit sorer on the end. I carried on using the creams but they made me more sore. So I probably stopped using the cream and actually got it changed by the doctor after I saw him again, because I went on like a monthly basis to be examined and assessed. And this went on for probably… 12 months, something like that, putting this cream. But it didn’t seem to do any good, it didn’t go any worse but didn’t get any better. This little sore patch continued to be there. And after a while, after going so many times I actually missed an appointment at the hospital and they tended to… their standard policy if you missed an appointment you didn’t get another. So I carried on at home using the creams and it still… it still was getting sore. And then I stopped using them for a while and it would mend up a little bit. But the consultant I’d originally seen had had said that if I didn’t use the creams it would turn cancerous. And eventually I went to see my own doctor because I’d run out of cream to get hold of some more. And he prescribed the same cream as the consultant’s guy which I carried on using for probably another 12 months off and on. Because I stopped using it from a week or two because it got too sore and then I’d start using it again because in the back of my mind I’d been told it could be cancerous. And it sort of went on... on and off and on and off like that for another 12 months. And eventually I got a… waterworks infection. So I rang up the doctors and I couldn’t get in to see my doctor but I saw the nurse practitioner who prescribed some antibiotics. Which were… worked wonderfully. They saw the waterworks infection off, but within a fortnight it was back. Then I rang the doctors again and I still couldn’t see the, my doctor but I got a locum who was a young Indian doctor, who was quite switched on and on-the-ball. And he examined me and gave me a larger dose of the antibiotics to clear up the waterworks infection and also I mentioned the soreness and these little mark on the end. He examined me and gave me a note to attend the [Hospital], as an outpatient. And this I did and eventually I… well they took a biopsy which turned out to be cancerous.

The surgeon visited James the day after he had his cancer removed to tell him the operation had gone well. James was not bothered about how his penis looked afterwards.

And when you came to how did you feel?

How did I feel... well happy it was all over, I should think...The following day the... the doctor who’d done the operation and came and had a word with me and said he’d got everything, everything had gone according to plan and he was quite pleased with how it... how it had come away like. So, I think it was more the following day when I got the results, rather than the same day but they were a lot better than what you could have hoped or whatever, you know it he’d caught it.

And how long was it before you were able to see the results of the operation yourself?

See the results...

See what your penis looked like?

The following day, basically, yeah the following day, yeah. Yeah the bandage were removed and whatever and…. I think they wanted... they wanted to air to get to it more than anything to help heal it rather than have it bandaged up so yeah.

And what did you think about the results of the operation? What did you think about how your penis looked like?

I wasn’t really bothered what it looked like as long as I was alright in general. It’s not like it... it’s something that... that’s on your face that you can see, is it? It’s … it doesn’t really matter to me.
 

James finds using a funnel helpful to direct the flow of his urine when using the toilet.

I tend to sit down to go to the loo, nowadays. It… it tends to come out sideways does the water, rather than straight. Which makes it a little bit awkward when you’re stood up hitting the pot [slight chuckle]. There’s no more I can say really, it’s just…..I do have a... a funnel, there’s a little funnel affair... which is very helpful at times for directing it.

Are you managing that OK or...?

Oh yeah, yeah it... that doesn’t bother me at all. It’s a bit of a challenge but it does... it’s alright. We can cope with that.