About Kidney and Bladder Cancer

Cancer that forms in tissues of the bladder (the organ that stores urine). Most bladder cancers are transitional cell carcinomas (cancer that begins in cells that normally make up the inner lining of the bladder). Other types include squamous cell carcinoma (cancer that begins in thin, flat cells) and adenocarcinoma (cancer that begins in cells that make and release mucus and other fluids). The cells that form squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma develop in the inner lining of the bladder as a result of chronic irritation and inflammation.

Kidney cancer is usually defined as any cancer that is determined to have arisen from the kidney. It usually does not include metastatic cancer of the kidney, i.e. cancer that arose outside of the kidney and has spread to it.

The two most common types of kidney cancer, reflecting their location within the kidney, are renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and urothelial cell carcinoma (UCC) of the renal pelvis.

The distinction between these two types (RCC and UCC) is important because their prognosis, staging, and management, i.e. treatment (e.g. surgery, chemotherapy etc.), is different.