Is Bladder Cancer Treatable?

The type of surgery will depend on the stage, grade, and type of bladder cancer. So, let’s check what the different types of surgery doctors use to treat it are:

1. Cystectomy

Doctors may use surgery to remove all parts of your bladder or to create a new way for the urine to pass. Cystectomy is done to remove all parts of the bladder when the cancer has grown to the walls of the bladder. 

There are two types of this surgery. A radical cystectomy removes the bladder and surrounding tissues, while a partial cystectomy removes parts of it.

Radical cystectomy sometimes involves removing the prostate (a gland in the male reproductive system) and seminal vesical (part of the anatomy that is considered typically male) or in the case of a female, their ovaries, uterus, and felodipine tubes.  

This procedure is done when cancer has grown to the muscle tissues or cancer that has a chance of recurrence. A partial cystectomy is done in rare cases to remove a tumor from one part of the bladder.

2. Urinary Diversion Surgery

 After your bladder has been removed during a radical cystectomy, your surgeons need to make a new way to store the urine and pass it out. 

Urinary diversion surgery is done to create a new way. In this procedure, the doctor may create an internal pouch to store the urine or they may attach the ureters to a new opening in your body.

There are three types of urinary diversion surgery:

• Neobladder Reconstruction: Your surgeon creates a sphere-shaped reservoir or storage out of your intestine in Neobladder reconstruction. This storage is seated inside your body and attached to the urethra. 
• Ileal Conduit: Your surgeon will create a tube using a piece of your intestine and this tube will run from the ureters to the outside of your body. The urine will be emptied into a pouch known as a urostomy bag that you wear on your abdomen.
• Continent Urinary Reservoir: In this procedure, the surgeon creates a urine storage using your intestine and the urine passes through a hole in your abdomen using a catheter.

3. Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumor (TURBT)

Your doctor may also use Transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT) if it’s an early-stage bladder cancer. They will insert an instrument through your urethra to remove the tumor during TURBT.

Doctors use TURBT as the first line of treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Here’s how the procedure is done:

• You will be given anesthesia. 
• Then, the doctors insert a cystoscopy which is a thin tube with light and a camera through your urethra and bladder. 
• Next, the doctors use a small tool to remove the tumor
• After that, doctors apply heat to stop any bleeding
• Lastly, doctors remove the cystoscope and insert a catheter

Doctors may use Intravesical and Traditional Chemotherapy for the treatment. Intravesical chemotherapy is a targeted treatment where chemotherapy drugs are injected directly into your bladder.

On the other hand, intravesical chemotherapy may be combined with traditional chemotherapy to kill cancer cells throughout your body. This combination helps increase the effectiveness of radiation therapy.

To learn more about chemotherapy, check our article on it: https://www.medicoexperts.com/side-effects-of-chemotherapy/

In this therapy, a high-energy radiation beam is used to kill cancer cells. For bladder cancer, external beam focus radiation therapy is used. In this therapy, a beam outside your body is focused on your cancer the way X-ray is done.

For the therapy, a machine is used that moves around your body. The focus is on the exact point affected by cancer. 

Radiation Therapy can be used for bladder cancer in three ways:

Palliative therapy is used to give relief from pain and control symptoms of bladder cancer.

Adjuvant radiation therapy destroys cancer cells that are still present after the surgery to lower the risk of cancer coming back.

Chemoradiation therapy is using radiation therapy and chemotherapy together to treat the cancer.

Immunotherapy uses your immune system to treat cancer. It helps the immune system recognize and fight cancer cells. Some drugs are used in muscle-invasive bladder cancer.

Your doctor may ask you to undergo immunotherapy after bladder cancer surgery. They do it to lower the risk of cancer recurrence. This immunotherapy is called adjuvant immunotherapy. Doctors will use it if the bladder cancer has spread to other parts of the body. 

Doctors will ask you to undergo immunotherapy:

• You have a high risk of cancer recurrence and chemotherapy cannot be used in your case.
• Your cancer is creating high levels of a protein called PD-L1.

There are different types of immunotherapy used for bladder cancer treatment. The most common types are below:

1. Intravesical Immunotherapy

The drug is directly put into the patient’s bladder using a catheter. This immunotherapy is used for treating early-stage bladder cancer. There can be side effects like flu-like symptoms and a burning feeling in the bladder.

2. Intravenous Immunotherapy

In this immunotherapy, doctors will inject the drug through your vein. It is used to treat advanced bladder cancer or cancer that is recurring.

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