Bladder cancer

Transurethral resection

Transurethral resection of a bladder tumor (sometimes shortened to TURBT or TUR) involves cutting away the cancerous cells using a special tool called a resectoscope. The resectoscope is passed into the bladder via the urethra and the tumor is treated with an electrical current by a process called fulguration. Your urologist will usually recommend transurethral resection if your cancer hasn’t invaded the muscular wall of the bladder.

Partial cystectomy

Partial cystectomy may be performed if your tumor has invaded the wall of the bladder yet is still contained in one area. During this procedure, your urologist will remove the cancerous part of the bladder, but it’ll still be able to carry out its full function after your recovery.

Radical cystectomy

Radical cystectomy is a treatment option for more extensive cancers that have invaded the muscle wall and spread beyond the bladder. During this procedure, your urologist will remove of the bladder and create a new route for urine to pass out your body. Nearby organs or lymph nodes may also need to be removed if the cancer has spread – in men, this may be the prostate and seminal vesicles, and in women, it may be the uterus, ovaries, and part of the vagina.

External beam radiation therapy (EBRT)

At GenesisCare our bladder cancer treatments include external beam radiation therapy (EBRT), where radiation is delivered from outside the body, and internal radiation therapy (IRT), where the radiation dose is given via a source implanted within the body.

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT)

IMRT is an advanced external beam radiation therapy technique where the beams of radiation are precisely shaped to exactly match your tumor and damage to adjacent healthy tissues is limited.

Surface-guided radiation therapy

SGRT uses sophisticated 3D camera technology to help your radiation therapy care team to position you for treatment more accurately each day, without the need for permanent tattoos. The technology also monitors any unintended movements to might make during the treatment and will pause the radiation until you are back in the correct position.

High-dose-rate brachytherapy

HDR brachytherapy is an internal radiation therapy that delivers radioactive pellets to the tumor site through small plastic tubes called catheters. This is usually done in one session and the radioactive pellets are removed after 20 minutes.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy refers to drugs that destroy cancer cells. These drugs can delivered to the tumor site through and vein in your arm (intravenous chemotherapy) or into the bladder through a catheter in your urethra (intravesical chemotherapy).

We use chemotherapy to help control your cancer’s growth, relieve symptoms and improve your bladder cancer prognosis. Our expert teams may recommend chemotherapy before or after other treatments, or on its own. It can be combined with radiation therapy (chemoradiation) before or after surgery.

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy helps your body’s own immune system to recognize and fight the cancer. In bladder cancer, immunotherapy is used if your cancer has not spread from the bladder lining. Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) treatment is an immunotherapy that is delivered as a solution into your bladder through a catheter in the urethra.