These compounds have been prohibited in most western countries for many years, but because of the long latent period between exposure and development of bladder cancer, people previously exposed should still be considered at risk, even decades later. Bladder cancer can develop at any time but occurs most often 20 years after exposure. Given the number of people who smoke relative to those working in risky occupations, and current levels of industrial control of causative chemicals, smoking is now the leading cause of bladder cancer in Canada. Natural History Understanding the natural history of bladder cancer is complicated by the use of two different staging systems. Authors also tend to present their data in terms of recurrence rates without giving information on length of follow-up.
Most studies show that the higher the grade or stage, the more frequent the recurrence.
From this and other reports, we know that C is is associated with higher rates of progression and recurrence. Lesion restricted to Deep Muscle T3b Lesion restricted to Perivesical fat T4 Invading Neighboring organs Maneuver Superficial bladder cancer is asymptomatic in most patients, presenting as microscopic hematuria on routine urinalysis. Since the hematuria is usually intermittent, a single examination is not sufficient. Traditionally, the number of red blood cells per high-power field of a microscope has been the standard, reaching significance when there are more than 3 to 5 red cells per field. The advent of dipstick urinalysis has made it possible to test urine in the office quickly with relatively accurate results.