Is the bladder cancer embryonic antigen high?

Written by Liu Liang

Oncology

Updated on September 03, 2024

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Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is significantly elevated, mainly seen in gastrointestinal tumors, especially in colorectal cancers such as colon and rectal cancers, where CEA elevation is more pronounced. It can also be notably higher in patients with lung adenocarcinoma, and bladder cancer might show an increase in CEA as well. However, the increase in CEA is not necessarily consistent, and its diagnostic value for bladder cancer is limited due to low specificity and sensitivity, making it not very instructive. The definitive diagnosis of bladder cancer primarily involves cystoscopy and taking a biopsy to confirm the presence of cancer.

Other Voices

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Written by Chen Feng

Urology

1min 13sec

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Can urine odor be a sign of bladder cancer?

Urine with an unusual odor may be caused by bladder cancer, but the presence of an odor alone cannot be used to diagnose bladder cancer. Clinically, urine with an odor is commonly associated with urinary tract infections, as patients with such infections tend to have a higher amount of inflammatory secretions in their urine. Additionally, patients with urinary tract infections may lose some body water through sweating, leading to more concentrated urine, which can increase the odor. Bladder cancer patients are more susceptible to urinary tract infections, so they may also experience odorous urine. Clinically, bladder cancer is diagnosed through a combination of the patient's symptoms and supportive diagnostic tests. In the early stages of the disease, bladder cancer typically presents as painless hematuria (blood in the urine) that persists for an extended period. A routine urinalysis can be performed to check for elevated red blood cells in the urine. If bladder cancer is suspected, a cystoscopy can be conducted to identify any masses in the bladder and take biopsy samples for pathological examination. The presence of tumor cells in these samples generally confirms a diagnosis of bladder cancer.

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Written by Wang Jian

Urology

49sec

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Is bladder cancer hereditary?

Bladder cancer is the most common malignant tumor in urology, occurring on the mucosa of the bladder and is also one of the top ten common tumors globally. The etiology of bladder cancer is complex, involving both intrinsic genetic factors and external environmental factors, which gives bladder cancer a hereditary tendency. Notable among the major risk factors are smoking and occupational exposure to aromatic amines, with 30% to 50% of bladder cancers caused by smoking. The incidence of bladder cancer significantly increases with the duration of smoking. The initial clinical manifestation of bladder cancer is usually hematuria, typically painless and intermittent gross hematuria. The presence of blood in urine should prompt further diagnostic testing to rule out malignant tumors in the bladder.

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Written by Zhou Zi Hua

Oncology

59sec

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The most common clinical manifestations of bladder cancer

The most common clinical manifestations of bladder cancer include: one initial clinical presentation is hematuria, which typically appears as painless, intermittent gross hematuria, sometimes it can also manifest as microscopic hematuria. The hematuria may occur only once or last from one day to several days, and it can subside or stop on its own. The color of the hematuria can be light red, possibly dark brown, generally dark red. The amount of bleeding and the duration of the hematuria are not necessarily proportional to the malignancy degree, size, scope, and number of the tumor. Additionally, bladder cancer patients can experience symptoms of bladder irritation, such as frequent urination, urgent urination, painful urination, and difficulties in urination, etc.

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Written by Liu Liang

Oncology

1min 7sec

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Does bladder cancer require the removal of the bladder?

Whether or not to remove the entire bladder in cases of bladder cancer depends on whether the tumor has invaded the base layer and whether there is distant metastasis. For non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, where the muscle layer is not invaded and there is no distant metastasis, typically found in stage 0 and stage 1 bladder cancer patients, there is no need for complete removal of the bladder. The standard treatment in such cases generally involves transurethral resection of the bladder tumor. If the tumor has invaded the base layer but there is no distant metastasis, termed muscle-invasive bladder cancer, patients in this category require radical cystectomy, which involves the removal of the entire bladder. If there is distant metastasis, termed metastatic bladder cancer, surgical treatment is not pursued; instead, palliative chemotherapy is the primary approach.

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Written by Xu Chun Hua

Urology

39sec

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Early symptoms of bladder cancer

Hematuria is the most common and earliest symptom of bladder cancer, with 85% of patients experiencing intermittent gross hematuria which can decrease or stop on its own, often giving patients a false impression of improvement or cure, thus delaying treatment. Sometimes, hematuria is also found under a microscope, and the amount of bleeding is not necessarily consistent with the size, number, or malignancy of the tumor. The hematuria from bladder tumors can initially be mild, and other symptoms such as frequent urination, urgency, and painful urination may also occur; these are all manifestations of bladder tumors.