Bladder cancer is caused by an abnormal tissue growth, known as a tumour, which grows and spreads inside the bladder.
It's a relatively common type of cancer in older adults.
The most common symptom of bladder cancer is blood in your urine. This does not usually feel painful.
Read more about the symptoms of bladder cancer.
The bladder
The bladder is a hollow, balloon-like organ that is located in the pelvis.
The kidneys filter waste products out of your blood. The waste products are mixed with water to create urine which passes down two tubes called ureters and into your bladder. When your bladder is full, the urine passes out of your body through a tube called the urethra, when you urinate.
Types of bladder cancer
There are two types of bladder cancer.
If the cancerous cells are contained inside the lining of the bladder, doctors describe it as non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. This is the most common type of bladder cancer, accounting for 7 out of 10 cases, and the least serious. Most people do not die as a result of it.
When the cancerous cells have spread beyond the lining into the surrounding muscles of the bladder, it's referred to as muscle invasive bladder cancer. This is less common and has a higher chance of spreading to other parts of the body (metastasising) and resulting in death.
Treating bladder cancer
In cases of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, it is often possible to remove the cancerous cells while leaving the rest of the bladder intact. This is done using a surgical technique called transurethral resection (TUR). TUR is usually followed by a course of chemotherapy to prevent the cancer returning.
In some cases, a medication known as Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is also injected into the bladder as it has been found to encourage the immune system to destroy any remaining cancerous cells. The immune system is the body’s natural defence against infection and illness.
Treatment for muscle-invasive bladder cancer usually involves surgically removing the bladder in an operation that is known as a cystectomy.
Further surgery will also be required to find another way of passing urine out of the bladder. Possible options include creating a hole (stoma) in the abdomen so that urine can be passed out of the bladder, or constructing a ‘new bladder’ out of a section of bowel.
Read more about treating bladder cancer.
Causes of bladder cancer
Most cases of bladder cancer appear to be caused when the tissue of the bladder is exposed to harmful substances which, over the course of main years, lead to abnormal biological changes in the bladder’s cells. The most common harmful substance is tobacco smoke. It is estimated that half of all cases of bladder cancer are caused by smoking.
Coming into contact with certain chemicals that are used in manufacturing was previously thought to be responsible for around 1 in 4 cases. However, these cases are thought to be becoming less common due to improvements in workplace safety standards.
Read more about the possible causes of bladder cancer.
Who is affected by bladder cancer?
Bladder cancer is associated with aging. Most cases occur in older adults, with the average age at diagnosis being 68 years of age.
Rates of bladder cancer are four times higher in men than in women, which is possibly because in the past men were more likely to smoke and had a higher risk of occupational exposure. However, women tend to have a worse outlook than men because they are more likely to develop the muscle-invasive type of bladder cancer.
Outlook
The outlook for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer is usually good. It is estimated that between 80-90% of people with this type of bladder cancer will live at least five years after being diagnosed, and many of them will live much longer than that.
Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer has a high risk of returning at a later date, which occurs in over half of all people with this type of bladder cancer. In around 1 in 10 cases, the cancer can return as the more invasive type.
The outlook for muscle-invasive bladder cancer is less favourable because achieving a complete cure is not often possible. An estimated 50% of people who are diagnosed with muscle-invasive bladder cancer will die within five years.
