Care for Bladder Cancer

If you have bladder cancer, you want the care that will give you the best chance for recovery. Fortunately, you’ll find it right here, close to home. At our cancer centers at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest and Lehigh Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg, you’ll find doctors who are leaders in their fields – including a fellowship-trained urologic oncologist. You’ll also have the advantages of the latest advances in technology. And you’ll benefit from our active involvement in research to find new treatments that extend life.

These are some of the reasons we've been selected as a site of the National Cancer Institute’s Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP). Through this program, patients have access to more clinical trials, plus we’re able to increase access and decrease barriers to cancer care. We're also affiliated with the Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute in Tampa, Fla., which further increases access to breakthrough cancer clinical research.

If you have a urologic cancer, you have a better chance and more options today than at any time in the past. But some treatments still have risks for infertility, impotence or incontinence. You can be sure that your quality of life is a major concern of our Urologic Consultative Service. Whether you’re being diagnosed for the first time or looking for a second opinion, our Consultative Service means you will see an entire team of specialists in the same day. Team members will review every aspect of your case and offer the best treatment recommendation. This approach has been shown to be most effective in aggressively and successfully treating cancer.

In a single visit, you will meet with each member of the team:

• Urologic oncologist
• Urologist
• Radiation oncologist, who uses precise, intense radiation to combat cancer
• Medical oncologist, who is educated in treating cancer with chemotherapy and biologic agents
• Cancer nurse

Team members will meet with you individually, make sure they understand your concerns and explain your options. You’ll also receive a written recommendation. That’s important because you’ll probably want to think things over before making a decision. You can call your nurse at any time if you have questions.r before making a decision. You can call your nurse at any time if you have questions.

Diagnosis

• Biopsy
• Bone scan
• CT (computerized tomography) scan
• Cystoscopy (also called cystourethroscopy)
• MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)
• Ultrasound
• Urine culture
• Urine cytology
• X-rays

Treatment

• Biologic therapy (also called biologic response modifiers)
• Chemotherapy
• Clinical trials
• Radiation therapy
• Surgery
• RapidArc radiotherapy

This page last updated 11/16/11 03:00 PM