Bladder Cancer on the Rise in Younger Women

CLEVELAND - November is Bladder Health Awareness Month.

Reports show that men are about four times more likely than women to be diagnosed with bladder cancer.

However, Cleveland Clinic research shows that trend seems to be changing.

“The four-to-one ratio is no longer true when we start looking at the younger patients. What we have started seeing is 30% of all bladder cancers are now in females, which is incredibly interesting. And we know that there is some kind of pathology happening that we don’t quite understand yet,” said Laura Bukavina, MD, MPH, urologic oncologist at Cleveland Clinic. 

Dr. Bukavina and her team have been investigating why bladder cancer seems to be on the rise in women younger than 50.

So far, there is no clear answer.

She said it doesn’t appear to be due to genetics or even smoking, which has historically played a role with bladder cancer.

Instead, they are noticing a possible association with air pollution, water pollution and microplastics in the environment.

“What’s important to know is we are just at the tip of the iceberg. We are now recognizing the issue, and I think recognizing the issue is the first step. Now we really need to dig deep and understand the exposure, the mechanism and how do we prevent it,” she said.

Dr. Bukavina said the most common symptom of bladder cancer is blood in the urine.

Women may also notice similar symptoms to a UTI.

Depending on when it’s caught and the type, it can sometimes be cured.