Carli Davis
Manoj Sharma
Epidemiology
Assignment # 2
Background
Bladder cancer is a type of cancer that begins in the bladder. This type of cancer begins most often in
the cells that line the inside of the bladder. Bladder cancer usually effects older adults but can occur at
any age. Most of the cancer seen in the bladder can be diagnosed at an early stage and can be treated.
Most bladder cancer survivors undergo follow up tests to look for bladder cancer in future years.
Some symptoms and signs include hematuria, dark yellow urine, small amounts of blood in the urine,
frequent urination, painful urination, back pain and pelvic pain. It’s not always clear what can cause
bladder cancer. This type of cancer has been linked to smoking, parasitic infection, radiation and
chemical exposure. Bladder cancer develops when cells grow abnormally and this can cause the cells to
develop mutations that cause them to grow out of control, the abnormal cells form a tumor. Some risk
factors of bladder include: smoking, older than 40, being a white male, exposure to certain chemicals,
previous cancer treatment, taking a certain diabetes treatment, chronic bladder inflammation and
family or personal history of cancer.
There are three different types of bladder cancer and theses types may become cancerous. The type of
bladder cancer one may have determines the types of treatments that will work best. Transitional cell
carcinoma occurs in the cells that line the inside of your bladder. These cells expand when your bladder
is full and when it is empty. Tumors can also form in the lining of the urethra and ureters. Transitional
cell carcinoma bladder cancer is the most common in the United States. The next type of bladder cancer
is squamous cell carcinoma and the cells appear in the bladder due to response to an infection and
irritation. This is a rare type of bladder cancer. Adenocarcinoma begins in the cells that make up the
mucus secreting glands. This type is also rare in the United States. Bladder cancer often recurs.
Depending on what type of cancer you have will depend on the type of tests and treatment one will
undergo. Follow up plans for bladder cancer survivors are very important that can include a cystoscopy
every 6 months, or every year, depending on how aggressive the cancer is. The different cancers can
form into stages from 1 to 4.
Descriptive Epidemiology
It was estimated that 55,600 men and 17,910 women were diagnosed with bladder cancer and 14,880
men and women died of bladder cancer in 2012. From 2005-2009 the median age for those who were
diagnosed with bladder cancer was 73. Males had an incidence rate of 37 cases per 100,000 and females
were only at 8.9 cases per 100,000. Out of all races, whites are among the highest percent with bladder
cancer, with Hispanics being the second highest percent. Bladder cancer has a very high survival rate at
77.7%, with white males having the highest survival rate at 80% and black females being the lowest at a
survival rate of only 54.3%. This shows that even know white men are more prone to getting bladder
cancer that are also most likely to survive from it. Stage one bladder cancer has the highest rate of
survival at 96.4%. Stage 2 bladder cancers has a survival rate of 70.2%, Stage 3 which can spread to
regional lymph nodes, the percentage lowers to 32.9%. Stage 4 bladder cancer survival rate lowers to
5.5%. The median age at death fin the US for bladder cancer is 79 years.
Prevention and Control
Some ways to reduce your chance of getting bladder cancer include don’t smoking, be careful with
chemicals, drink water throughout the day, choose fruits and vegetables rich in color to consume more
antioxidants. Tests and procedures that are used to diagnose bladder cancer can include a cystoscopy,
biopsy, urine cytology and imaging tests. During a cystoscopy a doctor inserts a small narrow tube in
your urethra allowing the doctor to see inside of your urethra and bladder. Patients receive anesthesia
during a cystoscopy. During a biopsy, the doctor will insert a special tool through the scope and into the
bladder to collect a cell sample to test. This can also be called a transurethral resection (TUR). A urine
cytology is a sample of urine analyzed under a microscope to check for cancer cells. Imaging tests allow
the doctor to examine and highlight the structures of the urinary tracts by using a dye that is injected
into a vein before the procedure. Once you have been diagnosed with cancer, the doctor will use Ct
scans, bone scans, chest x rays, and MRIs to conclude what stage the cancer is in. The treatment and
drugs used for bladder cancer depends on the stage and type of cancer you have. Early stage bladder
cancer can be treated by surgical procedure to remove the tumor or the tumor and small portion of the
bladder. If the cancer has developed deep in the bladder walls, a radical cystectomy operation may be
needed, this removes the entire bladder and surrounding lymph nodes. In men, this includes removing
the prostate and seminal vesicle and in women, the uterus, ovaries and part of the vagina is also
removed. Biological therapy also called immunotherapy works by helping the immune system fight
cancer cells. This is administered through the urethra. The drugs include Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG)
which is an immune stimulating bacterium. Interferon is another drug that can be used to help your
body fight infection and it is a protein that your immune system makes. The last types include
chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Chemo uses drugs to kill cancer cells and radiation therapy is
rarely used in bladder cancer but uses high energy beams to kill cancer cells.
Awareness
Chose Hope raises awareness for all types of cancers including bladder cancer. Bladder cancer has the
colors marigold, blue and purple and July is bladder cancer awareness month. The bladder cancer
advocacy network was the first national advocacy organization dedicated to advancing bladder cancer
research support and education. Each year they host the national walks for bladder cancer which is set
for Saturday May 4. In last year’s efforts, more than 5000 people participated in 60 walks and 30
different states to raise more than $275,000.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bladder-cancer/DS00177