Bladder cancer

Bladder cancer is the most frequently occurring tumour of the urinary tract and the eighth-most common cause of cancer death in the UK. Urothelial cell carcinoma of the bladder is characterized by high recurrence rate, pathological progression and poor survival in advanced metastatic disease. Due to the long follow-up period and associated expenses of disease monitoring it is one of the most expensive cancers to manage. Local therapy and surveillance are the mainstays of management of early disease, whilst neoadjuvant chemotherapy, radical surgery and radiotherapy are effective in advanced disease. There remains a great need for effective tumour markers to aid diagnosis, staging, monitoring and predicting prognosis. Novel therapies for advanced metastatic bladder cancer are under development and assessment.