Learning About Bladder Cancer
- Artist Tracy Emin was diagnosed with a type of bladder cancer called squamous cell carcinoma in spring of 2020. She underwent intense surgeries to treat her cancer, but now she lives with a urostomy bag to replace her bladder and urinary system.
- In a recent Instagram post, Emin gave more details about what it’s like living with a urostomy bag and shared picture of her stoma the opening in her abdominal wall that attaches to the bag.
- Bladder cancer develops when cells that make up the urinary bladder start to grow and eventually develop into tumors. It is highly treatable when caught in the early stages of the disease.
- Blood in the urine, or hematuria, is the most common symptom of bladder cancer, but there are other signs of the disease. One of our experts says the best way to avoid bladder cancer is to "hydrate well, don't smoke and make sure that you get in to see your physician if you have symptoms that concern you."
The 58-year-old British artist has never shied away from controversial or intimate topics. Her next exhibition A Journey To Death opens at the Carl Freedman Gallery in Margate, Kent, from April 24 to June 19, but she’s perhaps best known for her installation, My Bed a display consisting of her actual, unmade bed surrounded by an assortment of miscellaneous personal items including used underwear and condoms and empty liquor bottles. The piece was made to reflect on a period of several days Emin spent in her bed suffering from depression.
Tracey Emin’s Cancer Journey
Read MoreFor treatment, she had her bladder, urethra, lymph nodes, part of her intestine and “half of [her] vagina” removed along with a full hysterectomy the removal of the uterus and cervix and sometimes the ovaries and fallopian tubes as well.
As a result, she now has the “major disability” of a urostomy bag to replace her bladder and urinary system. Unfortunately, the bag needs to be emptied as frequently as every 20 minutes.
“You never know when it’s going to happen,” she told BBC.
In a recent post, Emin shared pictures of her stoma the opening in her abdominal wall that attaches to the urostomy bag.
View this post on Instagram
“This is my stoma .. most people have never seen one,” she wrote in her caption. “It's something I'm supposed to hide for ever.”
She went on to explain more about the importance of her “fragile and delicate” stoma.
Exploring the Treatment Options for Metastatic Bladder Cancer
“Without it Bering there and functioning correctly.. I will die,” she said. “I have almost total muscle wastage in my core abdomen., stomach . My body will never be the same.
“Many disabilities can not be seen. But I thought I'd show you mine.”
Emin is still learning how to navigate life with a urostomy bag, but she has had clear scans since her treatment indicating that her cancer is “gone.”
“I never realized how much I wanted to live until I thought I was going to die,” she said.
Understanding Bladder Cancer
Bladder cancer is the fourth most common cancer among men, but women get the disease too. It develops when cells that make up the urinary bladder start to grow and eventually develop into tumors.
"Bladder cancer is one of those cancers that you don't hear about too often, which has always been surprising to me because it is the fifth most common cancer that we see in the American population," Dr. Jay Shah, the cancer care program leader for urologic oncology at the Stanford Cancer Center, previously told SurvivorNet. [It's worth noting that the National Cancer Institute puts it as the sixth most common type of cancer in the U.S.]
What Are the Risk Factors for Bladder Cancer?
There are many factors to consider regarding your risk of developing bladder cancer. The following are some risk factors to think about:
- Smoking. Smokers are three times more likely to be diagnosed with bladder cancer than non-smokers.
- Chemical exposure. Some chemicals used in dyes, rubber, leather, printing material, textiles and paint products have been linked to risk of this disease.
- Hydration. Drinking a lot of fluids each day is associated with lower bladder cancer risks. This is partly due to the fact that people who stay well hydrated empty their bladders more often.
- Race. Caucasians are twice as likely to develop this cancer.
- Age. The risk of this disease increases as you age.
- Sex. Men are diagnosed more often than women.
- Personal history. Your risk increases if you or anyone in your family has had bladder cancer.
Symptoms of the Disease
Bladder cancer can often be detected early because the main first sign of the disease hematuria is hard to overlook. This is great news because bladder cancer is highly treatable when detected early.
Hematuria means there is blood in the urine. This blood can change the urine's color to orange, pink and, in some extreme cases, dark red. Hematuria is usually the first sign of bladder cancer, but it can also occur with other health issues too.
What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Bladder Cancer?
"That is far and away the most common presenting symptom," Dr. Arjun Balar, the director of the genitourinary medical oncology program at NYU Langone's Perlmutter Cancer Center, previously told SurvivorNet.
In the early stages of bladder cancer, when the tumor is small and cancer cells are confined to the bladder, this bleeding is typically painless. Because of this and the fact that these symptoms can be brief and irregular, some people might not seek out medical help right away. And when there's only small amounts of blood in the urine, you might not even see a noticeable change in color.
According to Dr. Balar, other bladder cancer symptoms resemble that of a urinary tract infection. He even said some patients might find out they have bladder cancer after "many courses of antibiotics to treat what was thought to be a urinary tract infection that simply did not get better."
"Early acknowledgement of symptoms, and not ignoring symptoms is probably one of the other most important things that you can do," he said.
Can Urinary Tract Infections Cause Bladder Cancer? The Answer Is Mostly No.
On top of blood in the urine, other possible symptoms of bladder cancer can include:
- Needing to urinate more frequently than you typically would
- Feeling like you need to urinate urgently even when your bladder isn't full
- Waking up to urinate many times throughout a night
- Having a trouble urinating because of pain or a burning sensation
- Frequent urination, urgent urination, and uncomfortable urination are all symptoms of bladder cancer.
In addition, people with advanced bladder cancer may experience additional symptoms like:
- Inability to urinate
- Pain on one side of the lower back and pelvis
- Loss of appetite
- Unintended weight loss
- Fatigue or weakness
- Bone pain
- Swollen feet
There's no recommended screening for bladder cancer since screening methods have not been shown to reduce the risk of dying from the disease for people with an average level of risk. Even still, doctors may recommend screening for certain high risk individuals. But if you want todo your best to avoid bladder cancer, Dr. Balar's advice is simple:
"Hydrate well, don't smoke and make sure that you get in to see your physician if you have symptoms that concern you."
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