|
• | Cancer
of the bladder is the fourth most common cancer among men and the ninth most
common cancer among women. There are about 55,000 new cases
yearly, with approximately 9,000 deaths per year in the US.
|
|
• | Bladder
cancer may occur at any age, but it is much more
common in patients over 50 years old.
|
| • | Three
out of four people diagnosed with bladder cancer are men between the ages of
45 and 80 years.
|
| • | The
most common type of bladder cancer is Transitional Cell Carcinoma, the cancer
of bladder lining.
|
| • | Bladder
cancer is almost always curable if detected and treated early, with a 5-year
survival rate of more than 90%. However, advanced disease is much more
difficult to treat. |
| • | The
most common symptom of bladder cancer is blood in the urine. Other
symptoms include frequent urination, strong urges to urinate and burning
during urination. But these symptoms are most often caused by bacterial
infections or kidney stones. |
| • | Bladder
cancer is diagnosed by a biopsy done during a cystoscopy. The inside of the
bladder is examined with an instrument which is passed through the tube which
carries the urine from the bladder to outside of the body (or the
urethra). |
| • | More
than 90% of bladder cancer patients are treated with surgery, or surgery
combined with other therapies, such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy is used to
treat more than 90% of bladder cancer patients. |
| • | Radiation
and chemotherapy can increase the chances for local control, help control
metastatic disease, and cure of the disease, but are usually not used as the
main treatment. |
