Urinary bladder cancer and its associated factors – An epidemiological overview

Abstract

As per the GLOBOCAN 2018, bladder cancer was estimated to have 549,000 new cases and 200,000 deaths per year and was ranked 10th among all cancers in the world; it contributed 3.4% to the total cancer burden worldwide. In India, there were 18,921 new cases and 10,231 deaths with an incidence rate (per 105) of 2.4 and 0.7 in males and females, respectively, and mortality rates (per 105) as 1.3 and 0.3 in males and females, respectively; it is ranked 17th in incidence and 19th in mortality. The aim of the study is to report incidence rates, mortality rates, and risk factors for bladder cancer with special emphasis to Indian data. It is hypothesized that bladder cancer is likely to increase due to changing lifestyle and environmental factors that would directly impact on the disease burden. This review study on bladder cancer (ICD: C67) is based on various reports and studies published. Incidence and mortality rates are obtained from GLOBOCAN-2018, Cancer Incidence in Five Continents (CI5-XI), and Indian Council of Medical Research publication on Indian Cancer Registry database. There are case–control studies reported in literature that elucidates on risk factors that include age, gender, tobacco consumption, arsenic and nitrate in drinking water, exposure to potential carcinogens at workplace, and family history. Urinary bladder cancer has a wide spectrum of severity from the indolent low grade non-muscle invasive disease to muscle invasive disease which has poor outcomes despite treatment. There seems to be an increasing trend of this cancer in the developing countries, including India. More studies are required to be undertaken to understand this disease, with the underlining importance of public awareness. The review aims to provide some leads to formulate policies for cancer control strategies based on past findings from the literature.