Colin Willis, a 58-year-old man from Basildon in Essex, first became aware of his symptoms about 12 months ago when he began suffering from recurrent painful urinary infections, which initially cleared up with antibiotics but persistently flared up again. He also suffered with the uncomfortable and frustrating feeling that his bladder was never empty.
The symptoms Colin suffered created an adverse effect on his life. He found himself having to plan his life around trips to the toilet and the relentless feeling that his bladder was never empty; including up to seven trips throughout the night to relieve himself. The turning point for Colin was when he wet himself during a breakfast out with his wife, he knew he needed help.
At a visit to his GP, Colin went through a number of tests including a flow and camera test (Uroflowmetry studies and Cystoscopy) confirming that Colin had a benign enlarged prostate, causing the urethra to be squashed, leading to persistent infections.
As a result of the tests conducted, his GP referred Colin under his Private Medical Insurance to Mr Vohra, Consultant Urologist at Spire Roding Hospital. At Colin’s initial consultation, Mr Vohra gave him a comprehensive assessment, enabling him to recommend a suitable treatment and showed him a video of the HoLEP procedure.
“Patients have the right to know about their body and the type of treatment being offered, therefore I feel showing them the procedure makes understanding it easier” explains Mr Vohra.
“HoLEP stands for Holmium Laser Enucleation of Prostate, an alternative to the standard Transurethral Resection of the Prostate (TURP) treatment for the surgical management of benign prostate enlargement. The advantages of HoLEP include minimal bleeding, short hospital stay and quick recovery for the patient”.
HoLEP Holmium laser prostate surgery is a treatment using high powered laser energy to remove or enucleate obstructive tissue with the aim of leaving a wide channel and restoring normal urinary function.
Colin says “Spire Roding Hospital staff are attentive, caring and serve great food! I had an excellent experience and I felt well looked after. After the operation I felt no pain, which was a pleasant surprise! I only felt discomfort during the catheter removal and the only testing done afterwards were occasional flow tests to keep a record of how much fluid I was taking. I was warned that there could be a tinge of blood for a while but as I was made aware I wasn’t worried.”
Colin says “This procedure hasn’t disrupted my life one bit. I started to return to normal life a few days after leaving hospital. The only side effects I have experienced is when I need to urinate it takes a while to get going and empty my bladder.”
“There is now good scientific evidence that this procedure is long lasting and the failure rates are very low. HoLEP has also been reviewed by NICE (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence)” states Mr Vohra.
Colin has some wise words for people who are suffering the same symptoms and constant disruption to their life’s as he did. “Don’t hang about… if you keep getting bladder infections, get help because a solution is available. A quick recovery and you can finally get on with your life”