After A Cancer Diagnosis At 39, Groundbreaking New Treatment Option Helps Texas Man Save His Bladder & Get Back To An Active Life

RELATED: Inlexzo: A New Option For Bladder Cancer Patients When BCG Immunotherapy Stops Working

His quick action led him to seek medical care right away, ultimately making him the first person in Texas to receive Inlexzo, the breakthrough drug-releasing therapy, after standard first-line treatment failed.

Inlexzo (also known as the gemcitabine intravesical system or TAR-200) is a chemotherapy treatment for low-grade, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NIMBC).

It is delivered through an iRDS placed in the bladder, which releases the chemotherapy directly into the tumor environment continuously, improving local control and reducing the risk of recurrence.

Now, 40, Jimi is sharing his story with SurvivorNet to spread awareness during Bladder Cancer Awareness Month and help others take action when symptoms arise, urging, “Do everything you can to fight for yourself.”

After Jimi’s first symptom, blood in his urine, he jumped into action right away.

“It was definitely scary, and I was proactive. I found a doctor, a urologist in my area, and I went to go see them pretty quickly,” he explains.

“When I was there, they, I think, just assumed it was in a large prostate because of my age. So they gave me some medication to help with that. But then once I got home and the days went on, I started to experience urinating clots, which was even more alarming. So then I went back to the doctor and said, ‘I think this is something different.’ They did a CT scan, and that’s when they told me that I had cancer.”

Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), the type Jimi was diagnosed with, means the tumor has not grown into the thicker muscle wall of the bladder, according to the Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network (BCAN).

Jimi, who refers to himself as the kind of person who never waits or puts off getting checked by a doctor, says it proved worthwhile to seek care within days of noticing his most obvious symptom, blood in his urine, as it led to an early-stage diagnosis.

Jimi also noted that he felt he had a small bladder and urinated more often than his friends, though it’s uncertain whether that was connected to his diagnosis.

Prior to receiving Inlexzo, Jimi underwent standard therapy, intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) therapy, which ultimately wasn’t successful.

It is common for patients with NMIBC to experience cancer recurrence after BCG therapy, the most common form of intravesical therapy (IVT), which involves medicine being injected directly into the bladder to remove any remaining cancer cells.

He recalls feeling discouraged, as it seemed like the next step would have been to remove his bladder.

What Is Intravesical Therapy and How Is It Used in Bladder Cancer?

“For a while there, it looked like I was going to have to remove my bladder, which was very scary to me. Just being so young … I’m really active, especially in the water. I love swimming, paddle boarding, tubing, and jumping off bridges. I really enjoy the summertime and rollerblading,” Jimi says. “I’m still looking for love and single and ready to mingle, and I just felt like that would be very difficult for me to have a bag attached to me.”

He recalls thinking he would adjust if he needed to, but he really hoped he wouldn’t need to.

“Then my new doctor’s team, after they found out it was cancer, I was referred to a different team in the same office, Dr. Carl Bischoff [a board-certified urologist at Urology Austin] and his PA Holly Kane, which was a blessing because Dr. Bischoff informed me of this new medication that was having great results, that it was just waiting to get FDA approved and that it was right on the brink of doing that. He thought I’d be a good candidate.”

Jimi credited his medical team for telling him about the newly FDA-approved Inlexzo, a treatment he’s still on, but has already helped him reach “no evidence of disease.”

Life With Inlexzo

His decision about whether to try the new treatment was “easy” for him as he had immense trust in his doctor. Jimi also believes his faith guided him to the right treatment path and doctors.

“I’ve definitely grown closer to God throughout this. I’ve always believed in God, but especially now, I’ve reawakened my spirituality in a way that I’m really happy to explore,” Jimi explains, further expressing how his friends stepped up to support him through his health journey.

“I’ve had wonderful friends throughout my life, people coming out of the woodwork supporting me, but especially the friend group that I have now, just researching things for me, coming to my doctor’s appointments, dropping things off for me that if I’m having a rough day,” he says.

“My job, my employer has been super supportive, and they’re there for me as well, and my family also, but they’re a little further away and a little older, so they can’t get here as much as they want. But they’ve also been very supportive.”

As for how his Inlexzo treatment affects his daily life, he says it hasn’t changed anything.

“I love being able to do the things I love to do, while still undergoing treatment. It’s just really, if I have a UTI [urinary tract infection], that’s really the only thing that will keep me from doing those things. But it’s not all the time. And like I said, it’s more so in the beginning. Once you’re over that hump, they’ll happen every so often. But otherwise, I’m living my life, I’m doing things, I’m being active, and you wouldn’t even know,” Jimi says.

Today, Jimi has about a year and a half of treatments remaining. “I’m really optimistic and hopeful and very satisfied with the results so far,” he says.

Speaking Up About Health Issues

In the beginning of his bladder cancer journey, his doctor initially found a large tumor, “roughly the size of a large egg,” which was surgically removed. Jimi had a total of four surgeries to remove tumors.

Jimi hopes that by sharing his story, he’ll inspire others to find their voice and speak openly about whatever they’re facing, even any “embarrassing” health issues they may have.

“It may be scary, but I think that it’s important for your loved ones to know what you’re going through because I feel like my support system has been crucial in my wellbeing and my perspective,” Jimi says. “It’s important not to isolate.”

It helped a whole lot to have a care team that truly heard him, he says.

“They have taken such good care of me. Every time I go to my urologist, they’re rolling out the red carpet, and I’m friends with the nurses and everything. So it makes all the difference when you have a care team like that,” Jimi says.

“It also makes all the difference to have people in your life, like friends that can be there for you, but they won’t know what’s going on if you keep it private and isolated.”

What To Know About Jimi’s Extraordinary Treatment

Because chemotherapy is delivered directly into the body through an iRDS, patients are required to come in regularly for installation and replacement, Holly Kane, MMSc PA-C, a physician assistant who was part of Jimi’s care team, tells SurvivorNet.

“Every three weeks you get a dose, you have it, basically the first one’s an implant, and then the next one after that is an exchange. And that’s for the first eight doses, and that’s what Jimi’s at,” Kane explains. “He’s at that last, that eighth dose. From there, it’s every 12 weeks, you get kind of a three month gap, and that’s for the next six doses. So he’s done the big push and he’s about to enter the time when he gets a bit of a coasting in between.”

Before Jimi began Inlexzo, Kane recalls his medical team discussing his treatment options once it became clear that bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) therapy was no longer effective for him.

“Until recently, there weren’t a lot of options,” Kane says. “The bladder cancer space recently is starting to have more movement with great new medications like Inlexzo, but really for the last 50 years, it’s been BCG. And then if BCG doesn’t work, we do a cystectomy, which is when we remove your bladder. And obviously it’s not the goal. Most people don’t want that to happen.”

They spoke about possibilities, and Inlexzo was one of them. “He was interested in trying that and it had just come off clinical trial. So, in Texas, Jimi was the first patient off clinical trial to receive Inlexzo as a therapy,” Kane says, calling it a “really powerful tool” for patients to avoid needing urostomy, a common surgery that creates another way for urine to leave the body after the bladder is removed.

“I think it’s also really important to state that having a cystectomy [bladder removal surgery] isn’t a life ending procedure. People overwhelmingly go back to being active and being able to go to work and travel when they have that done,” Kane notes.

“While it’s not typically the goal that any of us want to have at the end, if you do get to that point, it’s not remarkably life altering once you get on the other side of the surgery and you recover.”

RELATED: Bladder Cancer Treatment: Adjusting To Life After Cystectomy

Thanks to Inlexzo, which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in September 2025, Jimi was able to avoid needing surgery to remove his bladder.

According to Johnson & Johnson, Inlexzo may be a treatment option for people who want to avoid cystectomy. It is directly inserted into the bladder that gradually releases medicine over time.

Inlexzo is inserted by a clinician during a brief procedure using a narrow catheter. The insertion takes just a few minutes and typically doesn’t require anesthesia. Once in place, it remains in the bladder for approximately three weeks during each treatment cycle, so the medicine can work continuously without frequent procedures.

The Importance of Transparency, Support, and Individual Treatment Focus

Kane advises anyone navigating cancer treatment, to “take it one treatment at a time.”

“The treatments all have side effects and side effects are very similar to having a bladder infection. So not that it’s unbearable, but it’s not pleasant all the time. And so, I always tell patients, ‘Just take it one treatment at a time. Be very open with your provider,'” she says.

She also stresses that mental health struggles, like depression, are common for many patients facing cancer.

“It can be an overwhelming diagnosis for people, and if I don’t know that my patient is going through that, then I can’t help them with it. So always talk to your provider about what’s going on and whether that’s physical or mental so that they can help you with that,” Kane adds. “Sometimes I think patients don’t view the provider as the person in the corner with them, but we are, and we’re a better teammate with them if we know what’s going on.”

Another factor of transparency lies in candid discussions about a new treatment’s potential, and what options might be should it not work or stop working.

Kane suggests patients ask questions like:

• What can we do to try to prevent the side effects?
• What are things that I can do to be proactive?

“The most important thing is to communicate with your team that’s taking care of you at the doctor’s office and make sure that you’re open about the side effects you’re having, the symptoms that you’re having, and make sure that you’re also open with the emotional things that you’re going through, because that’s the best way that we’re able to help you as providers,” she adds.

On Jimi’s cancer journey, Kane adds that he is “effervescent in his personality” and an incredible example of “how sticking through treatment can have a really good outcome at the end of it.”

“He’s just such a warm-hearted person that it’s hard not to be in his corner when you meet him.”

A Message Of Hope For Those Fighting Cancer

“I think it’s really easy to get caught up in bad negative emotions. And those are meant to be felt, sadness, anger. Definitely allow them to come through, but just don’t let them take over,” Jimi says.

“Snap out of it. Do something you like. Be with someone you love and don’t give up. There are so many new treatments, and if you happen to take Inlexzo, just hang in there because I know the beginning can be a little rough, but once you’re over the hump … there are times I even forget it’s there,” he adds.

Bladder Cancer Basics

Your bladder is a hollow, muscular, balloon-shaped organ that expands as it fills with urine, an essential component of your body’s urinary system.

Bladder cancer begins when the cells lining the inside of the bladder start growing uncontrollably and form tumors.

Common symptoms of bladder cancer include:

• Frequent urination
• Pain or burning during urination
• Flank pain (discomfort in the sides of the lower back)
• A sudden, urgent need to urinate
• Blood in the urine, which may appear pink, red, or cola-colored

Smoking is one of the most dangerous contributors to bladder cancer. In fact, the National Institutes of Health reports that roughly half of all bladder cancer cases are caused by smoking.

As for why this happens, the toxic chemicals in nicotine and other compounds found in cigarettes remain in the bladder for extended periods before being flushed out through urine — giving them more time to damage bladder tissue.

WATCH: Understanding bladder cancer risk factors

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

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