According to the National Cancer Foundation, an estimated 61,700 U.S. males and 18,770 U.S. females will be diagnosed with bladder cancer just this year. Bladder cancer remains the fourth most prevalent male cancer in North America (and males are 4 times more at risk compared to female patients). Bladder cancer develops within the cells of the bladder. Bladder cancer often doesn’t display symptoms in the early stage, so the risk of cancerous cells forming a malignant tumour and spreading to nearby tissues and organs may be common. Depending on the stage, cancer progression, and patient’s health, treatment options for bladder cancer include the following effective, safe, and common options:

1. Bladder cancer surgery
Surgery for bladder cancer involves the removal of cancerous tissue as well as a margin of surrounding tissue through surgical removal. Depending on the stage of the cancer, your doctor will recommend the best suitable surgery from the following options:

• Transurethral bladder tumor resection: Also known as transurethral resection, TURBT is primarily used for diagnosis, staging, and treatment. It involves removal of tumor in the urethra using cystoscope. TURBT can fully treat the cancer but a doctor can recommend additional procedures to make sure it does not come back. Transurethral resection may treat patients with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer.
• Lymph node and cystectomy dissection: This surgical procedure involves the removal of the whole bladder and some tissue surrounding it. Precisely, prostate and urethra is removed in men as well as uterus, ovaries, fallopian tubes and part of the vagina may be removed in women through the procedure. Lymph nodes for both genders may also be removed.
• Urinary diversion: In the case of the removal of a patient’s bladder, urinary diversion will be created using a section of the colon or small intestine.

2. Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy involves the use of drugs to eliminate cancer cells through inhibiting their growth and division. The treatment schedule is made up of a number of cycles provided in a given period of time. Depending on the stage of cancer, a doctor can recommend either of the following two types of chemotherapy: intravesical and systemic. Some of its regimens for bladder cancer include carboplatin and gemcitabine, cisplatin and gemcitabine, MVAC as well as dose dense (DD)-MVAC. Systematic chemotherapies tests are ongoing to establish drugs or a combination of treatments that can treat bladder cancer the best possible. The side effects of this cancer treatment option varies from one person to another and usually, depends on the dose used. However, the following are some of the most common side effects risk of infection, fatigue, vomiting and nausea.

3. Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy strengthens the body’s defense system to fight cancer. It leverages materials from either a laboratory or body to target, restore or improve immune system function. Forms of the treatment include Bacillus Chalmette-Guerin (BCG), Immune checkpoint inhibitors, and interferon. While Bacillus Chalmette-Guerin is a standard drug for bladder cancer treatment which is a weakened tuberculosis bacterium known as BCG, interferon is another type of immunotherapy that can be administered as an intravesical therapy. You can always talk to your doctor about any possible side effects of the treatment.

4. Radiation therapy
Radiotherapy involves the use of x-rays to kill cancer cells. The most common type of radiotherapy administered by radiation oncologists is external-beam radiotherapy involving a machine outside the body which provides the therapy. Internal radiation therapy is another type which involves radiotherapy using implants. It is combined with other treatment options to form a primary treatment. Usually, radiotherapy is combined with chemo to treat cancer in the bladder. The combination is often administered to kill any cancer cells remaining after TURBT, to relieve symptoms, or treat a metastasis concentrated at one area.