Bladder cancerIntroduction

Bladder cancer is a cancer often associated with chemical exposure through occupation, air pollution, smoking, and drinking water with contaminants.

Bladder cancer is a cancer often associated with chemical exposure through occupation, air pollution, smoking, and drinking water with contaminants.

Numerous ecological (geographical correlation) studies have found inverse correlations of bladder cancer incidence and/or mortality rates with solar ultraviolet-B (UVB) doses. The mechanisms whereby vitamin D reduces the risk of bladder cancer include effects on cellular differentiation and proliferation, angiogenesis around tumors, and metastasis.

Keeping serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels above 40 ng/mL to 60+ ng/mL should reduce the risk of bladder cancer incidence and increase survival odds.

Bladder cancer is a minor cancer affecting males in the United States about three times more frequently than females1. Risk factors for bladder cancer include chemicals such as those associated with tobacco2 3 and air pollution such as diesel exhaust or emissions from coal-fired power plants4 5 and chlorinated hydrocarbons from drinking water6 7.  Despite the general consensus that smoking is a risk factor, regions of the United States with high mortality rates of white male lung cancer in the period 1970-94 were regions of low bladder cancer mortality rates1. Perhaps smokers succumb to lung cancer before they could die from bladder cancer.

Page last edited: 22 August 2011

References

  1. Devesa, S. S. Grauman, D. J. Blot, W. J. Pennello, G. A. Hoover, R. N. Fraumeni, J. F. Jr. Atlas of Cancer Mortality in the United States, 1950-1994. NIH Publication No. 99-4564. 1999 April 17, 2010;
  2. Samanic, C. Kogevinas, M. Dosemeci, M. Malats, N. Real, F. X. Garcia-Closas, M. Serra, C. Carrato, A. Garcia-Closas, R. Sala, M. Lloreta, J. Tardon, A. Rothman, N. Silverman, D. T. Smoking and bladder cancer in Spain: effects of tobacco type, timing, environmental tobacco smoke, and gender. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2006 Jul; 15 (7): 1348-54.
  3. Baris, D. Karagas, M. R. Verrill, C. Johnson, A. Andrew, A. S. Marsit, C. J. Schwenn, M. Colt, J. S. Cherala, S. Samanic, C. Waddell, R. Cantor, K. P. Schned, A. Rothman, N. Lubin, J. Fraumeni, J. F., Jr. Hoover, R. N. Kelsey, K. T. Silverman, D. T. A case-control study of smoking and bladder cancer risk: emergent patterns over time. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2009 Nov 18; 101 (22): 1553-61.
  4. Goebell, P. J. Villanueva, C. M. Rettenmeier, A. W. Rubben, H. Kogevinas, M. Environmental exposure, chlorinated drinking water, and bladder cancer. World J Urol. 2004 Feb; 21 (6): 424-32.
  5. Grant, W. B. Air pollution in relation to U.S. cancer mortality rates: an ecological study; likely role of carbonaceous aerosols and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Anticancer Res. 2009 Sep; 29 (9): 3537-45.
  6. Cantor, K. P. Lynch, C. F. Hildesheim, M. E. Dosemeci, M. Lubin, J. Alavanja, M. Craun, G. Drinking water source and chlorination byproducts. I. Risk of bladder cancer. Epidemiology. 1998 Jan; 9 (1): 21-8.
  7. Morris, R. D. Audet, A. M. Angelillo, I. F. Chalmers, T. C. Mosteller, F. Chlorination, chlorination by-products, and cancer: a meta-analysis. Am J Public Health. 1992 Jul; 82 (7): 955-63.