Bladder Cancer

Bladder Cancer

Bladder Cancer is a commonly diagnosed cancer that typically requires long-term care and disease management. Our experts here at Kentucky Lake Urologic Associates are experts in diagnosing, treating, and managing bladder cancer.

Bladder Cancer Statistics United States

• More than 700,000 men and women have bladder cancer(1)
• Third most common cancer for men(2)
• Incidence is four times higher in men than women(3)
• Incidence is almost 2 times higher in Caucasian men than in African American men(3)

Inside the Bladder

• Bladder cancer occurs in one or more of the four layers of the bladder lining.(4)
• The deeper the layer, the more difficult the cancer is to treat.(4)
• About half the time, it is limited to the uppermost layers (categorized as non-muscle-invasive).(5)
• Approximately a third of cases spread into the third layer, which is muscle (muscle-invasive).(5)
• In most of the remaining cases, the cancer has spread to nearby tissue or lymph nodes outside the bladder.(5)
• In about 4% of cases, it has spread to distant body parts.(5)

Beyond the Bladder(6)

• Bladder cancer can spread beyond the bladder.
• In men, the prostate and seminal vesicles are at risk.
• For women, the risk is to their cervix, uterus, and vagina.
• Can go beyond the pelvic area to lymph nodes around the heart.
• Other organs most commonly at risk are the lung, liver, and bones.

Common Risk Factors(7)

• Smoking: Smokers have double the chances of getting bladder cancer than those who don’t smoke.
• Chemical exposure: Some have been directly linked to bladder cancer, while others are merely suspected.
• Race: Caucasians are at greater risk than African Americans; and Asians have the lowest incidence.
• Age: Risk increases with age, but bladder cancer can occur at any age.
• Gender: Men are at greater risk than women.
• Chronic bladder inflammation: While urinary tract infections, kidney stones and bladder stones don’t cause bladder cancer, they have been linked to it.

Common Signs(s)

• Blood in the urine – even if painless, light, infrequent, or invisible to the naked eye
• Urination irregularities – irritation, urgency, frequency, and/or a constant need to urinate
• A simple urine test or culture can determine whether the signs are serious or not

Means of Diagnosis

• A urine cytology, where a doctor uses a microscope to look for cancer cells in the urine
• An internal bladder exam called a cystoscopy
• A biopsy on suspicious tissue or tumors removed from the bladder

The Cystoscopy(8)

• The gold standard in evaluating the bladder and urethra, as well as diagnosing and monitoring bladder cancer
• Conducted using a long, thin camera (a cystoscope) inserted through the urethra into the bladder
• Done in an operating room under general anesthesia or in a medical office with moderate sedation or pain management
• A standard cystoscopy uses everyday white light to help the doctor visually assess the general health of the bladder and find irregularities to be further investigated

Blue Light Cystoscopy with Cysview® (hexaminolevulinate HCl)(9)

• Here at HCMC’s Kentucky Lake Urologic Associates our urologists have the option to enhance a cystoscopy procedure with the latest technology – blue light equipment and an optical imaging agent called Cysview.
• Cysview makes bladder cancer glow bright pink under blue light.
• The addition of blue light and Cysview can significantly improve detection of non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer compared to white light alone.
• With enhanced visibility, more cancer can be removed.