Causes Of Bladder Cancer

Bladder cancer accounts for about 5% of all new cancers in the US. It is the fourth most common malignant cancer in men older than 60 years, but it is less common in women. The estimation for bladder cancer in the United States for 2017 are about 79,030 new cases of bladder cancer which about 60,490 in men and 18,540 in women. About 16,870 deaths from bladder cancer about 12,240 in men and 4,630 in women. These are significant numbers; however, the rates of new bladder cancers and cancer deaths have been dropping slightly in women in recent years. In men, incidence rates have been decreasing and death rates have been stable (American Cancer Society, 2017).

The Pathophysiology of Bladder Cancer

The exact causes of bladder cancer are unknown,

Sometimes, there is enough blood to change the color of the urine to orange, pink, or darker red. Sometimes, the color of the urine is normal but small amounts of blood are found when a urine test is done because of other symptoms or as part of a general medical checkup. Other changes associated with bladder cancer are having to urinate more often than usual, pain or burning during urination, feeling as if need to go right away, even when the bladder is not full, or having trouble urinating or having a weak urine stream (CDC,

Usually, urine tests are not used to make a specific diagnosis of bladder cancer because hematuria can be a sign of several other conditions that are not cancer, such as an infection or kidney stones. One type of urine test that can indicate the presence of cancer is cytology, a test in which the urine is studied under a microscope to look for cancer cells A bladder biopsy makes a definitive diagnosis. The imaging tests may be used to find out whether the cancer has spread. (American Cancer Society,