Blood in urine, termed as hematuria in medical terminology, is the first warning sign of urinary bladder cancer. However, other causes need to be evaluated and one should not panic on seeing blood in urine. Benign tumors, stones in kidney or urinary bladder and infection can also cause hematuria. Generally early stages of the bladder cancer cause bleeding but pain may be absent or there could be mild pain. Enlarged prostate in males may also show such symptoms. Blood in urine may be present one day and absent on the other day or for a week also. Change in bladder habits, such as burning during urination and extra urgency of passing urine can also be symptoms of bladder cancer.
Smokers are at great risk of having urinary bladder cancer. Cancer causing chemicals carcinogens) from tobacco smoke are absorbed from the lung into the blood circulation, filtered through kidneys and concentrated in urine. Toxic effect of these chemicals damage the internal lining of the bladder and increase the chances of development of cancer. Beta-naphthylamine , aromatic amines and benzidine used in dye industry can cause bladder cancer in industrial workers associated with textile & dying industry. Industrial workers associated with industries making rubber, leather goods and paints are also at high risk. Workers of printing companies are also at risk due to exposure to aromatic amines in printing inks. Painters and hairdressers are equally at risk of developing urinary bladder cancer. The risk of developing urinary bladder cancer increases with advancing age. It has been observed that urinary bladder cancer is more prevalent in men than women probably due to variation in exposure to carcinogenic chemicals and smoking habits.
Urinary bladder cancer can be treated through intravesical therapy and/or chemotherapy after surgical cystectomy. Cytological study of urinary deposit can be helpful in establishing a diagnosis of urinary bladder cancer. Pathological diagnosis of transurethral biopsy of urinary bladder is also sometimes required to establish the diagnosis. Superficial bladder cancer (early stage) can be treated through transurethral resection(TUR) using a rigid cystoscope called resectoscope, by an expert urologist. When the bladder cancer has deep roots or it is of invasive type, radical cystectomy may be required to remove all parts of the urinary bladder and further reconstructive surgery is performed to construct artificial bladder from a short piece of intestine. Just trust your urologist.
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