Symptoms of Bladder Cancer

The wall of the bladder is lined with cells called transitional cells and squamous cells. More than 90 percent of bladder cancers begin in the transitional cells. This type of bladder cancer is called transitional cell carcinoma. About 8 percent of bladder cancer patients have squamous cell carcinomas.

Cancer only in cells in the lining of the bladder is called superficial bladder cancer. This type of bladder cancer often comes back after treatment, but it does not tend to progress. If the tumor recurs, the disease often recurs as another superficial cancer in the bladder. Cancer that begins as a superficial tumor may grow through the lining and into the muscular wall of the bladder. This is known as invasive cancer. Invasive cancer may extend through the bladder wall. It may grow into a nearby organ such as the uterus or vagina in women or the prostate gland in men. It also may spread to other parts of the body.

Symptoms of Bladder Cancer

The primary bladder cancer symptoms or bladder cancer sign is blood in the urine (hematuria). Hematuria may be visible to the naked eye (gross) or visible only under a microscope (microscopic) and is usually painless. Other symptoms include frequent urination and dysuria, a condition where pain occurs on urination .

By far the most common sign of bladder cancer is the presence of blood in the urine, called hematuria. The blood in the urine can either be noticeable by the naked eye, called gross hematuria, or noted only when the urine is analyzed in a laboratory, called microscopic hematuria.

Other signs of bladder cancer could include symptoms of a urinary tract infection. These include increased frequency of urination, a feeling of urgency to urinate, pain (burning) with urination, and the feeling of incomplete bladder emptying. These are all caused by irritation of the bladder wall by the tumor

In advanced cases of bladder cancer, the tumor can actually obstruct either the entrance of urine into the bladder or the exit of urine from the bladder. This causes severe flank pain, infection, and damage to the kidneys. Obviously, bladder cancers that cause these symptoms need to be dealt with immediately.

Bladder cancer is a disease that affects the bladder, the organ responsible for acting as a collection reservoir for urine until it is excreted from the body. Like all other organs in the body, the bladder is vulnerable to disease, such as cancer. There are symptoms of bladder cancer that are common with the disease, but not exclusive to it. Symptoms can also be similar to much less serious conditions, so it is important to see your doctor if you experience them.