What Is The Best Treatment For Bladder Cancer

Bladder Reconstructions And Stomas

If you have had your bladder removed, the way you pass urine will change. There are several options that your treatment team will talk to you about:

• Urostomy is where doctors create a new hole in your abdomen called a stoma. Urine drains from the stoma to the outside of your abdomen into a special bag.
• Neobladder is where a new bladder made from your small bowel forms a pouch inside your body to store urine. You will pass urine by squeezing your abdominal muscles. You will also pass a small tube into the neobladder each day to help drain the urine.
• Continent urinary diversion is a pouch made from your small bowel inside your body to store urine. The urine empties through a hole called a stoma to the outside of your abdomen into a special bag.

A bladder reconstruction is a big change in your life. You can speak with a continence or stomal therapy nurse for help, support and information. You can also call Cancer Council (. You may be able to speak with a trained Cancer Council volunteer who has had cancer for tips and support. If you find it difficult to adjust after your bladder reconstruction, it may help to be referred to a psychologist or counsellor.

Note: If you have a stoma, you can join a stoma association for support and free supplies. For more information about stoma associations, visit the Australian Council of Stoma Associations.

Patients Can Enter Clinical Trials Before During Or After Starting Their Cancer Treatment

Some clinical trials only include patients who have not yet received treatment. Other trials test treatments for patients whose cancer has not gotten better. There are also clinical trials that test new ways to stop cancer from recurring or reduce the side effects of cancer treatment.

Clinical trials are taking place in many parts of the country. Information about clinical trials supported by NCI can be found on NCIs clinical trials search webpage. Clinical trials supported by other organizations can be found on the ClinicalTrials.gov website.

Treatment By Type And Stage Of Bladder Cancer

Noninvasive and non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer

People with low-grade noninvasive bladder cancer are treated with TURBT first. Low-grade noninvasive bladder cancer rarely turns into aggressive, invasive, or metastatic disease, but patients are at risk for developing more low-grade cancers throughout their life. This requires long-term checkups, called surveillance, using cystoscopy and urine cytology . To reduce the risk of future tumors developing, people may receive intravesical chemotherapy after TURBT.

Most commonly, people with high-grade noninvasive , carcinoma in situ , or non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer are treated with TURBT, followed by local intravesical Bacillus Calmette-Guerin . This combination of treatments is given to reduce the risk of the cancer from coming back, called recurrence, and the development of muscle-invasive disease. Before treatment with BCG, patients will need to have another TURBT to make sure that the cancer has not spread to the muscle. The first round of BCG treatment is given every week for 6 weeks. After that, the provider performs a cystoscopy and sometimes a bladder biopsy to see if all of the cancer has been eliminated. If the cancer is gone, patients usually have maintenance therapy with BCG, which may be given once every 3 months for the first 6 months and then once every 6 months after that, for 1 to 3 years. This will then be followed with long-term surveillance.

Muscle-invasive bladder cancer

Bladder preservation

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What Are The Risks Of Bladder Cancer

No single factor is directly connected to bladder cancer, but factors that can increase the risk include:

• Age: Bladder cancer typically affects people age 55 and older.
• Smoking: Carcinogens from tobacco smoke come in contact with the lining of the bladder. Smokers are three times as likely as non-smokers to get bladder cancer.
• Family history: There is evidence that bladder cancer may have a genetic component.
• Industrial chemicals: Chemicals known as aromatic amines are often used in the dye industry. Workers who have daily exposure to them, such as painters, machinists and hairdressers, may be at a higher risk for bladder cancer.
• Drinking contaminated water: This includes water that has been treated with chlorine or drinking water with a naturally high level of arsenic, which occurs in many rural communities in the United States,.
• Taking certain herb: Supplements such as Aristolochia fangchi, a Chinese herb, sometimes used for weight loss has been linked to higher rates of bladder cancer.

Treatment Of Stages Ii And Iii Bladder Cancer

For information about the treatments listed below, see the Treatment Option Overview section.

• Transurethral resection with fulguration.
• A clinical trial of a new treatment.

Use our clinical trial search to find NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are accepting patients. You can search for trials based on the type of cancer, the age of the patient, and where the trials are being done. General information about clinical trials is also available.

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Are There Any Effective Natural Remedies

Natural remedies are effective supports and go hand-in-hand with traditional medical treatment to treat bladder cancer safely and effectively. Some of the best natural remedies include baking soda, blackstrap molasses, and lemon. However, you may also benefit from a treatment known as the Budwig Diet this is a treatment plan that focuses on feeding your body electron-rich foods to eradicate cancer cells.

Prognosis And Survival Rates For Bladder Cancer

When someone is diagnosed with bladder cancer, their doctor will give them a prognosis. A prognosis is the doctors opinion of how likely the cancer will spread and the chances of getting better. A prognosis depends on the type and stage of cancer, as well as the persons age and general health.

Bladder cancer can usually be effectively treated if it is found before it spreads outside the bladder.

If you have bladder cancer, your doctor will talk to you about your individual situation when working out your prognosis. Every persons experience is different, and there is support available to you.

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Clinical Trials To Improve Treatment

Your doctor might ask if youd like to take part in a clinical trial. Doctors and researchers do trials to make existing treatments better and develop new treatments.

• BMJ Best Practice. Bladder CancerD Lamm and others

• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence , February 2015

• EAU Guidelines on Muscle-invasive and Metastatic Bladder CancerJ A Witjes and othersEuropean Association of Urology, 2017

• Bladder cancer: ESMO Practice Guidelines for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up J Bellmunt and others

What Foods Are Best When You Have Bladder Cancer

Many studies have explored if specific foods can fight bladder cancer. There have not been any conclusive results, but some research has shown that specific foods, especially those high in antioxidants, may have anti-cancer effects.

For now, the recommendation is to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, which has been associated with a reduced risk of cancer recurrence and death.

A healthy eating pattern includes:

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Five Types Of Standard Treatment Are Used:

Surgery

One of the following types of surgery may be done:

• Transurethral resection with fulguration: Surgery in which a cystoscope is inserted into the bladder through the urethra.A tool with a small wire loop on the end is then used to remove thecancer or to burn the tumor away with high-energy electricity. This is known as fulguration.
• Radical cystectomy: Surgery to remove the bladder and anylymph nodes and nearby organs that contain cancer. This surgery may bedone when the bladder cancer invades the muscle wall, or when superficialcancer involves a large part of the bladder. In men, the nearby organs that areremoved are the prostate and the seminal vesicles. In women, the uterus, theovaries, and part of the vagina are removed. Sometimes, when the cancer hasspread outside the bladder and cannot be completely removed, surgery to removeonly the bladder may be done to reduce urinarysymptoms caused by the cancer.When the bladder must be removed, the surgeon creates another way for urine toleave the body.
• Partial cystectomy: Surgery to remove part of thebladder. This surgery may be done for patients who have a low-grade tumor thathas invaded the wall of the bladder but is limited to one area of the bladder.Because only a part of the bladder is removed, patients are able to urinate normally afterrecovering from this surgery. This is also called segmental cystectomy.
• Urinary diversion: Surgery to make a new way forthe body to store and pass urine.

Radiation therapy

Chemotherapy

If The Cancer Comes Back

If your cancer comes back after treatment your doctor calls this a recurrence or relapse. The treatment you have depends on:

• where the cancer has come back
• the treatment you had before
• your general health and level of fitness
• your wishes

Some common sites it may come back in are the lymph nodes, lungs, liver or bones.

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What Tests Will I Have If My Doctor Suspects Bladder Cancer Or Another Urinary Problem

Your doctor will want to analyze your urine to determine if an infection could be a cause of your symptoms. A microscopic examination of the urine, called cytology, will look for cancer cells.

A cystoscopy is the main procedure to identify and diagnose bladder cancer. In this procedure, a lighted telescope is inserted into your bladder from the urethra to view the inside of the bladder and, when done under anesthesia, take tissue samples , which are later examined under a microscope for signs of cancer. When this procedure is done in the doctors office, local anesthesia gel is placed into the urethra prior to the procedure to minimize the discomfort.

If the diagnosis of bladder cancer is made, then the next step is to remove the tumor for detailed staging and diagnosis.

Transurethral resection is a procedure done under general or spinal anesthesia in the operating room. A telescope is inserted into the bladder and the tumor is removed by scraping it from the bladder wall , using a special cystoscope . This procedure is diagnostic as well as therapeutic.

This often can be done as an outpatient procedure, with patients discharged from hospital the same day. After removal, the tumor is analyzed by a pathologist, who will determine the type of tumor, the tumor grade and the depth of invasion. The purpose of the procedure is to remove the tumor and obtain important staging information .

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Signs And Symptoms Of Bladder Cancer

Sometimes bladder cancer doesnt have many symptoms. Signs or symptoms can include:

• blood in your urine
• pain or burning when passing urine
• not being able to pass urine when you need to.

Not everyone with these symptoms has bladder cancer. If you have any of these symptoms or are worried, always see your doctor.

If You’re Concerned About Bladder Cancer Ask Your Doctor About Cxbladder

Cxbladder is a cutting-edge genomic urine test that quickly and accurately detects or rules out bladder cancer. The test works at a molecular level, measuring five biomarker genes to detect the presence or absence of bladder cancer.

Cxbladder outperforms other urine-based tests in the detection of bladder cancer, and can improve overall detection accuracy when combined with other forms of testing. The majority of symptomatic and post-treatment surveillance patients do not have bladder cancer. Cxbladder enables the accurate rule out of patients presenting with blood in urine and those being monitored for recurrence, reducing the need for further invasive tests.Learn more about Cxbladder Ask our team a question

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What Are The Treatment Options For Bladder Cancer

There are four types of treatment for patients with bladder cancer. These include:

• Surgery

Sometimes, combinations of these treatments will be used.

Surgical options

Surgery is a common treatment option for bladder cancer. The type of surgery chosen will depend on the stage of the cancer.

• Transurethral resection of the bladder is used most often for early stage disease . It is done under general or spinal anesthesia. In this procedure, a special telescope called a resectoscope is inserted through the urethra into the bladder. The tumor is then trimmed away with the resectoscope, using a wire loop, and the raw surface of the bladder is then fulgurated .
• Partial cystectomy is the removal of a section of the bladder. At times, it is used for a single tumor that invades the bladder wall in only one region of the bladder. This type of surgery retains most of the bladder. Chemotherapy or radiation therapy is often used in combination. Only a minority of patients will qualify for this bladder-sparing procedure.
• Radical cystectomy is complete removal of the bladder. It is used for more extensive cancers and those that have spread beyond the bladder .

This surgery is often done using a robot, which removes the bladder and any other surrounding organs. In men, this is the prostate and seminal vesicles. In women, the ovaries, uterus and a portion of the vagina may be removed along with the bladder.

Chemotherapy

• Methotrexate

Intravesical therapy

Radiation therapy

Bladder Cancer Treatment Symptoms: Constipation

Constipation is another symptom those with bladder cancer may experience. Try to keep your liquid intake up by drinking at least eight cups of fluids a day. Fill up a jug with eight cups of liquid and finish the jug each day so you can track your fluid volume. Hot liquids like tea, coffee, broths and soup can move the contents through your gut more quickly.

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What Is The Success Rate Of Bcg Treatment For Bladder Cancer

Bladder cancer is a relatively common cancer that affects the urinary system. If not treated early, it can spread to other parts of the body and become fatal.

Bladder cancer is most commonly diagnosed in older adults. It grows slowly and usually does not cause symptoms until it is large and spreads to other organs.

Bladder cancer treatment options include chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Patients who are diagnosed with this kind of cancer are usually given BCG treatment to help fight cancer. Lets have a look at the success rate of BCG treatment for bladder cancer.

Transurethral Resection Of The Bladder Cancer Tumor

This is when the tumor is removed from the urinary tract through the urethra using an electrical force. Transurethral resection is an endoscopic or scope procedure that does not involve making an incision in the body.

Drug therapy after TUR is commonly prescribed for patients with large, multiple or high-grade tumors.

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Food And Drinks To Avoid If You Have Bladder Cancer

Raw Eggs & Some Dairy Products: Make sure you cook eggs well and don’t use homemade mayonnaise. Instead, stick to store-bought. If your immunity is low, don’t eat raw eggs, cheeses that come from unpasteurized milk like blue-veined and Brie cheeses, live bacterial yogurt and paté. These foods could have harmful bacteria in them.

Red Meat: Researchers have linked red meat with a higher risk of certain types of cancer, but for bladder cancer, the data are inconsistent. Still, limit your red meat consumption to 18 ounces per week, recommends BCAN.

Processed Meats: Processed meats are preserved by curing, salting, smoking or adding chemicals like nitrates, such as sausage, bacon, luncheon meats and hot dogs. Avoid all of them. A study revealed eating high quantities of processed meats might correlate with a 33 percent increased risk of bladder cancer.

Well Water: There is strong evidence showing individuals who drink well water containing arsenic have a higher risk of developing bladder cancer. Most individuals in the U.S. drink water from the public water system. But this could be a concern for those drinking from residential wells, particularly older wells.

Understanding The Statistics: Cancer Survival

It is important to remember that all cancer survival numbers are based on averages across huge numbers of people. These numbers cannot predict what will happen in your individual case.

Survival rates will not tell you how long you will live after you have been diagnosed with bladder cancer. But, these numbers can give you an idea of how likely your treatment will be successful. Also, survival rates take into account your age at diagnosis but not whether you have other health conditions too.

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