Types of Bladder Cancer

MUSCLE-INVASIVE BLADDER CANCER

Approximately 25% of bladder cancers are muscle-invasive. It means that cancer tumours have grown through the lining of the bladder into or through the bladder muscle. In most cases, this type of cancer is treated through surgery to remove the bladder completely (called a “radical cystectomy”) and to create a new path for urine to leave the body.

In certain very specific cases, treatment may be used which avoids surgery. There could be many reasons for not using surgery to completely remove the bladder. If you’re older, your urologist may feel that surgery is too risky, you may have other health issues that increase the risk from surgery, or you may have personal reasons for not wanting this major surgery.

NONMUSCLE-INVASIVE BLADDER CANCER

Approximately 75% of bladder cancers are nonmuscle-invasive. That means that the bladder cancer is contained completely within the bladder and had not penetrated into the muscle surrounding the bladder. We hope it never happens, but you should also be aware that about 20% of bladder cancer that was originally diagnosed as nonmuscle-invasive, progresses to muscle invasive.

METASTATIC BLADDER CANCER

Bladder cancer is considered “metastatic” when the cancer has spread from the bladder to other parts of the body such as the lymph nodes, liver, lungs, and bone. It’s also called advanced stage IV bladder cancer. Approximately 10-15% of patients are diagnosed at this stage.

Metastatic bladder cancer can be called “de novo,” which means that bladder cancer has already metastasized when it’s first diagnosed. Alternatively, it could metastasize after initial therapy for cancer that has not spread beyond the bladder.

Metastatic disease is associated with a more limited life expectancy than cancer that is diagnosed at an earlier stage. Treatment is geared toward prolonging survival, shrinking or slowing growth of the tumour, easing symptoms and improving quality of life. In other words, helping you live as well as you can for as long as you can. In rare cases, treatment of metastatic bladder cancer may result in a cure.