Bladder cancer is characterized by a cancerous growth in the bladder tissue. The bladder is the main organ responsible for holding urine in the body. According to a research study, this type of cancer attacks approximately 45,000 men and 17,000 women annually in the country.

Types of bladder cancer
Bladder cancer treatment can only be decided once the type and the stage of bladder cancer are determined. Following are some of the primary types of bladder cancer.

• Transitional cell carcinoma
  The bladder cancer treatment for this type is comparatively much easier than the other stages. It begins in the transitional cells present in the inner layer of the bladder. These cells transform their shape without damaging the tissue.

• Squamous cell carcinoma
  Squamous cell carcinoma is a rare type of bladder cancer. It can mainly be attributed to long-term infections or irritants present in the bladder.

• Adenocarcinoma
  This begins when the bladder has been inflamed and irritated for a very long time and glandular cells begin to form, which are mucus-secreting cells.

TNM system
The TNM system is widely used by oncologists to describe the staging of cancer. These stages are used to understand the severity, thereby ensuring that the bladder cancer treatment undertaken is most effective. Most oncologists use the diagnoses and tests to derive the following results.

• Tumor
  The ‘T’ in the TNM stands for tumor. It is used to understand the location, size, and type of tumor.
• Node
  The ‘N’ in the TNM system stands for the node. The nodes are basically the lymph nodes which helping in a fight the cancerous infections in the body. The doctors determine if the lymph nodes are affected, where, and how many.
• Metastasis
  The ‘M’ in the TNM system is for metastasis, which is mainly used to determine the extent to which cancer has spread in the body.

Grouping as per cancer staging
Bladder cancer staging is done as follows:

• Stage 0a
  This type is found only in the inner lining of the bladder.

• Stage 0is
  This is present only on the inner lining of the bladder.

• Stage I
  This grows from the inner lining to the lamina propria.

• Stage II
  This type further spreads into the muscle wall of the bladder.

• Stage III
  In this, the cancer has spread throughout the muscle wall and into the fatty layer tissue surrounding the bladder.

• Stage IIIA
  In this, the tumor has spread to the prostrate, uterus, or vagina.

• Stage IIIB
  In this, the cancer has spread to the common iliac nymph nodes or 2 or more lymph nodes.

• Stage IV
  In this type, the cancer has spread to the abdominal wall or pelvic wall, but not any further into the body.

• Stage IVA
  In this type, the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes present on the outside of the pelvis

• Stage IVB
  In this type, the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.

Depending on how far the cancer has progressed in the bladder cancer staging, the required treatment is undertaken.

Recurrent cancer
Recurrent cancer is the kind of cancer that requires a different approach to bladder cancer treatments. It is the kind of cancer that comes back once the treatment is over and hence, requires a different round of diagnoses and tests.

Grading for bladder cancer
To further understand the severity of bladder cancer, the following grades may be considered.

• Low grade  – This particular grade of cancer may recur more often.
• High grade – Cancer that lies under this grade will grow and recur often and is more severe as well.