Short introduction of Bladder Cancer

The bladder is an important part of a human’s body as it is one of the main organs which deals with detoxifying the body. As the organ that stores urine, and thus helps remove excess nutrients and waste products from the body, the bladder plays an primary role in many bodily functions.

Bladder cancer can be of three main types, depending on which area of the bladder it forms in, and what type of cells are affected. There can be many reasons for a person to develop bladder cancer, and people with a history of tobacco use or infections in the bladder have a risk of developing this disease. Use of tobacco is said to increase the chances of bladder cancer by two or three times. Although a person may have one or more of the above mentioned risk factors, they are not definite causes for developing the disease. Symptoms of bladder cancer include needing to urinate often, pain during urinating, and blood mixed with urine. These symptoms alone are not predictions of the disease, and so a more thorough check is necessary. Many types of tests can be taken to confirm the presence, or lack of, bladder cancer. In most cases biopsies can be the best way to say if a patient has bladder cancer or not.

Bladder cancer occurs in four stages, separated as such due to the extent of penetration of cancer cells in the bladder. Stage 0 is when the cancer cells appear only in the inner lining of the bladder, whereas Stage IV is when the cancer cells have spread through the body and reached other organs, like the lungs or pelvis. The three stages in between refer to how far the cancer cells have spread in the bladder or to the rest of the body, in their various levels.

Treatments vary according to each stage, with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and sometimes surgery, used. A blend of a number of therapies can also be used. It is always better to ask for the doctor’s advice on which kind of treatment would work best for the patient. Loss of apetite and feeling nauseous are side-effects of some therapy, but making sure the right nutrients are given to the patient is a vital step in recovery. Talking to a doctor or dietician will give the patient more knowledge on the diet that the patient needs to follow, so that recovery can be made faster and easier.