What is bladder cancer - and how is it treated?/Walla system
"King Charles has been diagnosed with a certain type of cancer," the British Royal House announced this evening (Monday), but did not reveal the type of cancer.
However, palace sources emphasized that it was not prostate cancer, but the cancer was discovered during the king's last treatment for an enlarged prostate.
Dr. Orit Raz, director of the urology department at Assuta Ashdod, what cancer might be discovered during treatments for an enlarged prostate?
"Of course, this is speculation at the moment, because the palace did not reveal this detail, but one of the most common complaints in the case of an enlarged prostate is urinary obstruction.
In such cases, a cystoscopy is performed, during which an optical fiber is inserted through the urethral tube and a channel through the urethral tube, which allows fluid to flow into the bladder.
This way you can look directly at the walls of the bladder and the urethra and check if their appearance is normal.
In addition, the device allows biopsies and various treatments such as treatment of strictures of the urethra, cauterization of bleeding areas in the bladder or removal of stones from the urinary tract.
"Since they claim that it is not prostate cancer, it is most likely that the King was diagnosed with bladder cancer, which usually appears as a polyp on the bladder."
He chose to reveal to the public about his illness, but did not elaborate.
King Charles/Screenshot, Instagram screenshot chrisjacksongetty
Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer in the world and the fifth most common in Israel, with the incidence in men (9.6 cases per 100,000) being 4 times higher than in women (2.4 cases per 100,000).
According to the professional literature, about 80 percent of the cases are of the "superficial" type of bladder cancer, and about 60-70 percent of the diagnoses are recurrent cases.
In Israel, about 1,700 new cases of the disease are discovered each year.
What are the risk factors for bladder cancer?
"There is no exact cause for the formation of this cancer, but there are risk factors associated with the disease. First, we see it more in men, although recently this gap is narrowing. The average age for the detection of this cancer is 73 and the main risk factor is smoking. About half of the people who have developed bladder cancer The urine is current smokers or has smoked in the past. There is also a correlation between the amount of smoking and the severity of the disease, its penetrability potential and the number of recurrences. Quitting smoking after initial detection of the disease can reduce the number of recurrences.
"Additional risk factors are related to exposure to carcinogenic substances, especially in the paint industries , the rubber, the fuel and the textile.
Bladder cancer can also appear years after exposure to ionizing radiation to the pelvis and certain types of chemotherapy treatments.
And of course there is the genetic connection."
What is the treatment for this type of cancer?
"When a polyp is discovered during the examination, it must be excised and examined to see what type it is, how deep it is and whether it is aggressive and penetrates the wall of the urinary bladder.
If it is a superficial tumor, only follow-up and repeated cystoscopy tests are required.
If the tumor is deep, additional treatment is needed.
This can be surgery or flushing of the bladder with chemical substances that stimulate the immune response in the bladder, with the aim of stopping the growth of additional tumors.
In an extreme case where the tumor penetrates the muscle layer of the bladder - radical treatment is required, which depends on the general condition of the patient.
The preference is to perform a resection of the entire bladder.
Another option is radiation treatments or chemotherapy."
What are the symptoms of the disease?
"Bleeding in the urine is the most common symptom.
Even if it's a one-time thing that has passed, you must get tested and find out what caused it.
As with many other diseases, early diagnosis can save lives here.
If it is diagnosed in time and an excision is performed - people can save their lives."
If it is indeed this type of cancer, what do you think the public reaction will be?
"As in many cases where celebrities have revealed their illnesses, the public will keep an eye out, pay attention to the symptoms and get tested.
This disease among women, for example, is usually discovered in its more severe stages, because they attribute the bleeding in the urine to inflammations, which are very common in women, and many of them miss the early diagnosis and end up in difficult situations."
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King Charles III