What Is Urothelial Bladder Cancer? (2023)

FAQs

Is urothelial cancer same as bladder cancer? ›

Urothelial carcinoma, also known as transitional cell carcinoma (TCC), is by far the most common type of bladder cancer. In fact, if you have bladder cancer it's almost always a urothelial carcinoma. These cancers start in the urothelial cells that line the inside of the bladder.

Muscle-invasive urothelial carcinomas are highly aggressive compared to cancers of the upper urinary tract, carrying a five-year disease-specific survival rate of <50% in pT2/pT3 disease, and this survival rate drops below 10% in pT4 cancer.

If the cancer extends through the bladder to the surrounding tissue or has spread to nearby lymph nodes or organs, the 5-year survival rate is 38%. If the cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, the 5-year survival rate is 6%. About 4% of people are diagnosed with this stage.

These cancers can almost always be cured with treatment. During long-term follow-up care, more superficial cancers are often found in the bladder or in other parts of the urinary system. Although these new cancers do need to be treated, they rarely are deeply invasive or life threatening.

Most cases of bladder cancer appear to be caused by exposure to harmful substances, which lead to abnormal changes in the bladder's cells over many years. Tobacco smoke is a common cause and it's estimated that more than 1 in 3 cases of bladder cancer are caused by smoking.

Muscle invasive bladder cancer is a serious and more advanced stage of bladder cancer. MIBC is when the cancer has grown far into the wall of the bladder (Stages T2 and beyond). For patients with MIBC, the overall prognosis (how the disease may progress) is dependent on stage and treatment.

Chemotherapy for the whole body (systemic chemotherapy), to increase the chance for a cure in a person having surgery to remove the bladder, or as a primary treatment when surgery isn't an option. Radiation therapy, to destroy cancer cells, often as a primary treatment when surgery isn't an option or isn't desired.

FIRST-LINE THERAPY A cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy regimen is the preferred initial therapy for patients with metastatic urothelial cancer of the bladder and urinary tract who are cisplatin candidates (algorithm 1).

Where can bladder cancer spread to? Not all bladder cancers will spread. But If it does it's most likely to spread to the structures close to the bladder, such as the ureters, urethra, prostate, vagina, or into the pelvis.

High-grade T1 (T1HG) bladder cancer (BCa) has a very high likelihood of disease recurrence and progression to muscle invasion. Radical cystectomy is considered the best chance at cure, albeit with a high risk of morbidity, and is overtreatment for some patients.

How does urothelial carcinoma spread? ›

Once bladder cancer has reached the lymph nodes, it can travel to distant parts of the body through the lymphatic system. Separately, it can also continue to grow into surrounding areas such as the abdominal wall (peritoneum).

Grade 3. The cancer cells look very abnormal. They are called high grade or poorly differentiated. They grow more quickly and are more likely to come back after treatment or spread into the deeper (muscle) layer of the bladder.

Papillary urothelial carcinoma often has a slow growth rate compared to less common types of bladder cancer.

When it's in its earliest stages, bladder cancer doesn't usually cause much pain. Some people have no pain whatsoever, while others may experience pain or burning when they urinate. Blood in the urine, either microscopic or visible to the naked eye, is commonly the first sign of bladder cancer.

The majority of high-grade papillary urothelial carcinomas become invasive (approximately 80%) and can spread to adjacent organs or give distant metastases (lung, liver, bone, brain, etc.).

(yoo-roh-THEE-lee-um) The lining of the urinary tract, including the renal pelvis, ureters, bladder, and urethra.

Urothelial carcinoma (or UCC) accounts for about 90% of all bladder cancers. It also accounts for 10% to 15% of kidney cancers diagnosed in adults. It begins in the urothelial cells that line the urinary tract. Urothelial carcinoma used to be called transitional cell carcinoma or TCC.

They tend to grow and spread slowly. High-grade bladder cancers look less like normal bladder cells. These cancers are more likely to grow and spread.

Survival for all stages of bladder cancer

almost 55 out of every 100 (almost 55%) survive their cancer for 5 years or more after they are diagnosed. around 45 out of every 100 (around 45%) survive their cancer for 10 years or more after diagnosis.

Can bladder cancer go undetected for years? If symptoms such as blood in the urine and changes in urinary habits are ignored by an individual and/or repeatedly misdiagnosed, it's possible that bladder cancer may not be detected for months or, in some cases, even years.

Is bladder cancer worse than kidney cancer? ›

Kidney cancer has the highest mortality rate of the genitourinary cancers. There are management issues with the high recurrence rate of superficial bladder cancer while muscle invasive bladder cancer has a poor prognosis.

Conclusion: Lymph nodes, lung, liver, bone, and peritoneum are the most common metastatic sites of upper urinary tract urothelial cancers.

UTUCs are relatively uncommon and account for only 5 percent to 10 percent of urinary tract cancers. These cancers develop primarily in people older than 70. Men are affected twice as frequently as women. Smoking: Smoking is one of the largest adjustable risk factors for developing UTUC.

Inheritance. Bladder cancer is typically not inherited. It is usually associated with somatic mutations that occur in certain cells in the bladder during a person's lifetime. In rare families, the risk of bladder cancer is inherited.

Bladder cancer occurs mainly in older people. About 9 out of 10 people with this cancer are over the age of 55. The average age of people when they are diagnosed is 73.

People over the age of 55 are more at risk, as are men, more than women. Exposure to harmful chemicals, either at home or at work, previous cancer treatments, chronic bladder inflammation, or a family history of bladder cancer can also play a role.

Papillary urothelial carcinoma tumors have a shape like a small mushroom. They attach with a tiny stem to the inner layer of the bladder, lower kidney, or ureter.

Smoking is the most important risk factor for bladder cancer. People who smoke are at least 3 times as likely to get bladder cancer as people who don't.

T1Hg bladder cancer progresses to muscle-invasive or metastatic disease at a rate of 30% to 50% after 5 years.

What is the survival rate of stage 4 urothelial carcinoma? ›

For a person with stage 4 bladder cancer, the 5-year relative survival rate is around 5 percent . This means that the person is 5 percent as likely as someone without cancer to live for a minimum of 5 years after diagnosis.

Urothelial neoplasms of the urinary bladder may be subdivided into papillary (papillomas, low malignant potential and papillary carcinoma) and non-papillary (urothelial carcinoma in situ and invasive) categories.

The diagnosis of “suspicious for high-grade urothelial carcinoma (SHGUC)” is meant to reflect the presence of urothelial cells with severe atypia that falls short for a diagnosis of high-grade urothelial carcinoma (HGUC) but beyond atypia that is associated with the “atypical urothelial cells” (AUC).

People with low-grade noninvasive bladder cancer (stage 0a) are treated with transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT) first. Low-grade noninvasive bladder cancer rarely turns into aggressive, invasive, or metastatic disease, but patients are at risk for developing more low-grade cancers throughout their life.

Typically in invasive papillary urothelial carcinoma both the overlying papillary and the invasive components are high grade. We describe a series of patients with invasive low-grade papillary urothelial carcinoma (LPUC) in which both the noninvasive and invasive components are low grade.

For most people, the first symptom of bladder cancer is blood in the urine, also called hematuria. Sometimes the blood is visible, prompting the patient to visit a doctor.

The most common type of bladder cancer is urothelial bladder cancer. This is also called transitional cell bladder cancer. There are some rarer types. These include squamous cell bladder cancer, adenocarcinoma, sarcoma and small cell bladder cancer.

Most bladder cancers — about 90 percent — begin in the cells on the surface of the bladder's inner lining. This type of cancer is called urothelial carcinoma (also called transitional cell carcinoma). Most urothelial carcinomas are a form of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC).

Once cancerous cells have reached the lymphatic system, they can make their way to almost any part of the body. Bladder cancer that has spread outside the bladder into other areas is called metastatic bladder cancer, also known as stage 4 bladder cancer.

What is the best treatment for urothelial carcinoma? ›

FIRST-LINE THERAPY A cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy regimen is the preferred initial therapy for patients with metastatic urothelial cancer of the bladder and urinary tract who are cisplatin candidates (algorithm 1).

The most common type of bladder cancer, urothelial carcinoma, is also the least invasive and slowest growing. Rare types of bladder cancer, such as small cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and adenocarcinoma, typically grow much faster.

Can bladder cancer be cured? Bladder cancer is usually treatable when caught at an early stage but more challenging to address when found later. Recurrence also poses a risk, even with early-stage tumors, so regular surveillance is essential following treatment or surgery.