Added: 02/27/2006 |
Bladder Cancer - Symptoms, Stages and TreatmentBladder cancer is not a very frequent type of cancer. But last years the incidence rate has been registered. Men suffer from bladder cancer more frequently. Bladder cancer ranks fourth among the male most common cancer and the tenth among the female most common cancer. It is diagnosed at localized stage in 74 per cent of cases.
Often the patients with bladder cancer do not enter the risk group i.e. the risk factors do not concern them. But it is important to know these factors because it is possible to change some of them or pass regular examination for the disease prevention or its early diagnosis.
The most important bladder cancer risk factor is smoking. According to the statistics smokers suffer from this oncological disease twice as often as nonsmokers do. Other bladder cancer risk factors are:
- Occupational conditions (aromatic amines, rubber-processing, tanning, textile, printing industry);
- Race (whites suffer from the disease 1.5 times as often as African Americans; bladder cancer frequency rate is the lowest among Asiatic);
- Age (the average age of detection is 68-69);
- Sex (men suffer from bladder cancer 2-3 times as often as women);
- Chronic inflammation;
- Birth defects;
-Chemotherapy (iphosphamide, cyclophosphamid);
- Arsenic in drinking water.
So, how to prevent bladder cancer? Bladder cancer preventive measures are not clearly defined today. But doctors recommend to avoid some risk factors if it is possible, e.g. do not smoke, drink more water, eat more Brussels sprouts and cauliflower as they include ferment that defends the cells and prevents their transformation into malignant cells.
Bladder cancer diagnosis: besides the above risk factors bladder cancer signs include blood in urine, urination disorders, frequent urination or vesicle tenesmus. Any other diseases may cause these symptoms but the patient should not ignore them and visit a doctor. If the bladder cancer is diagnosed at the early stage it improves the effectiveness of treatment. The usual screening includes urine analysis or cystoscopy. More detailed examination includes surely biopsy, magnetic resonance image, intravenous pyelography, computed tomographic scanning, ultrasonic scanning, bone scanning, tumor marker investigation, etc.
Bladder cancer treatment: the usual methods of bladder cancer treatment are surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Often doctors prefer the complex of treatment methods.
The five-year survival rate depends on the stage of disease. It varies from 95 per cent for the null stage to 10-15 per cent for the forth stage of the bladder cancer.
After bladder cancer treatment. General recommendations: when the treatment is completed it is recommended to pass on regular case monitoring to define the possible recurrent tumor or to diagnose new tumor in urinary tract. Usually it includes urine examination, blood test, cystoscopy and X-ray control.
If the patient is a smoker, it is better to give up smoking. It improves his condition and reduces the risk of other cancer developments.
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