Urinalysis (UA) and Hematuria - Blood in Your Urine

Nov 2019 - May 2020: Urinalysis (UA) and Hematuria

Blood in your urine is called hematuria. 

Hemat =  blood

Uria = urine

A urinalysis, also known as a UA, is when a urine sample is taken and a test is done on your urine. You pee in a cup, and they will look at the color of the urine, the concentration of the urine, and check the content of the urine like white blood cells and blood. This is usually done in the doctors office, but can also be done at a laboratory.

Get used to peeing in a cup. I have done more UA's then I could possible count at this point. 

Sometimes you will hear medical people talk about gross hematuria. This is when there is so much blood in your urine, that anyone that looks at your pee can see that there is blood in there. The color can range from slight pink, to bright red, to orange. 

If the blood can only be seen by a microscope, it's called microscopic hematuria. 

When I would go to the bathroom during this time, I found a very small amount of blood on the tissue I was using to wipe myself. I never saw any blood in the toilet. I didn't have pain, or any other out of the ordinary urinary symptoms. I didn't think much of it. I'm getting to the age of perimenopause (41), and just thought it was a strange or incomplete period. 

There was one instance, after going to the bathroom, that my bladder spasmed for like 10 minutes! At the time, I didn't know that it was my bladder. It was so intense, I thought it was my uterus contracting. It felt exactly like I was giving birth. The pain was so intense I was doubled over, sobbing, and using my Lamaze breathing I had learned while pregnant! Lol! 😂

I know that God helped me see what was really going on here with the slight amount of blood that I was seeing here and there (it wasn't with every urination). One day a thought popped into my head. That is how God talks to me sometimes. I specifically can tell it's from Him due to the randomness of the thought, and I get a feeling inside me that knows what I've been told is truth.

The question God asked me was, "Why is the blood in your urine never brown?" 

I would find blood on the tissue 2-5 times a week, but it was never brownish in color. It was always bright red, like in the middle of a period.

For the men out there... when a woman has a period, at the start and at the end of it, the blood is oxidized, and it turns a brownish color. If the blood I found on the tissue was so little and so infrequent, and if it was the beginning or end of a period, it would have been brownish. It would have been the start or the stop of a period.

My nurse brain from there concluded that there was only one other system the blood could be coming from - urinary.

My husband, an emergency physician, wasn't too concerned about it at this time. He told me that when he sees patients come into the ER with kidney or bladder cancer, the blood is usually so red, the urine looks like Hawaiian punch when they see it in the toilet. 

Additionally, I didn't want to get it checked out, because I don't like doctors, or hospitals, or medicine. I don't like to messed with. It was such a small amount of blood, and seemed like one of those things the doctor would just say "yeah, that happens to some older people".

I feel so blessed that we caught this cancer so early. I feel so blessed of the Lord that He helped get me moving on investigating this. 

Bladder cancer is the 4th most common cancer in the united states for men. However, women die more of bladder cancer then men do. Why is that? Experts think its because of this exact scenario that I was in. Women are used to having blood in the toilet or on our tissue. It might take some time for them to realize that the blood is coming from their urinary system.

Ultimately, my husband and I thought it best to go see my primary care doctor, just to make sure everything was fine. So I made the appointment with my Primary Care doctor.

I wasn't worried. This was probably some polyp, or weird irritation in my kidney or bladder. It can't be that bad - nothing hurts. Cancer was WAAAAY not on my radar. 

Who gets cancer when they are 41 years old?  

FYI... here are some other common symptoms of bladder cancer:

• Recurrent UTI's (urinary tract infections that happen a lot) 
• Pain in lower back or pelvic area 
• Urgency or frequency with urination 
• Smelly or cloudy urine 
• Pain/burning with urination
• Bloating and discomfort in the lower abdomen
• Bladder spasms
• Passing of pieces of tumor, you have a "kidney stone" that turns out to be a bladder tumor
  
• Vaginal pain
• Urine retention - problems with voiding (peeing) all the way
• Finding a mass in your pelvic area
• Weight loss
• Anemia (low blood cell count). 
• It might feel like you have all the symptoms of a UTI, but no infection.

Untreated bladder cancer will metastasize (spread) to other parts of the body, commonly the liver, lungs, and bones. 

So if you have blood in your urine - go get it checked out!!! 

My next step was to go see my Primary Care Physician.