BLADDER CANCER TREATMENT
Bladder cancer begins in your urothelial cells, the cells which form the inside of your bladder. Urothelial cells also form inside your kidneys and ureters, which are tubes that join the kidneys to the bladder.
Urothelial cancer can occur in both the kidneys and ureters but most commonly affect the bladder.
Catching the disease in its early stage will reduce the risk of fatality because bladder cancer, when caught early, is treatable.
A Bladder biopsy is done to diagnose bladder cancer. It is a procedure to obtain a sample of your bladder tissue. It is done during a cystoscopy, a procedure that examines the bladder with a lighted camera device. After the tissue is dissected, it will be sent for examination by a pathologist..
What causes bladder cancer?
Bladder cancer is caused by mutations in the cells of the bladder. It's often linked with exposure to certain chemicals, but the cause isn't always known. DNA that comprises urothelial cells has instructions that prompt the cells to multiply at an uncontrollable rate and, in the process, destroys healthy living cells.
Risk factors for bladder cancer are:
- Smoking
- Exposure to toxic chemicals found in textiles, dye, leather, rubber and paint
- Previous radiation therapy to treat cancer
- Persistent urinary tract infections (UTIs)
What are the symptoms of bladder cancer?
Blood in your urine (Haematuria) is the most common symptom of bladder cancer.
Less common symptoms of bladder cancer include:
- A burning sensation when urinating
- Urinating more frequently than usual
- Sudden urges to urinate
Treatments for bladder cancer are:
Surgery is a suitable option to remove cancerous cells inside your bladder.
- Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumour (TURBT) is a procedure to diagnose bladder cancer and determine the extent of its spread to the bladder wall's muscular layer. Besides being a diagnostic procedure, TURBT treats non-invasive, superficial cancers of the bladder.
- Cystectomy – partial or radical. To compensate for the lack of a bladder after its complete removal, urologists perform a cystectomy, a life-changing procedure to help you pass urine. Following the procedure, your urologist installs a urostomy bag to drain your urine. A portion of your small intestine can also be used to create a new reservoir or substitute a bladder for urine to collect. Dr Theron will discuss these options with you before you consider surgery.
- Chemotherapy of the entire body removes cancerous cells and reduces the risk of recurrence.
- Intravesical chemotherapy installations
- The chemotherapy medication gets injected inside the bladder to destroy cancer cells confined to this area.
- Radiation therapy is an alternative to surgery when surgery isn't a desirable option and is considered the primary treatment for bladder cancer.
MALE UROLOGY
FEMALE UROLOGY
PAEDIATRIC UROLOGY
GENERAL UROLOGY
CALCULI OF THE KIDNEYS, BLADDER AND URETER
