Can Kidney Cancer Cause Bladder Cancer?

Coping with kidney cancer and its treatment is hard to do – especially true if the disease has spread or become advanced. The good news, this malignant is one of the most susceptible cancers to immunotherapy. And it’s also often treated successfully or even curable if caught early. Another challenging question, can it also cause bladder cancer?

The issue of the recurrence cancer often takes attention. After completing the treatment for the cancer, you may expect that the cancer goes away and never comes back. The word ‘cured’ is difficult to imply for cancer survivors since it’s difficult to entirely check all remaining cancer cells and to make sure all of them have been removed. But if the cancer doesn’t return 5 years or more after treatment, it may be cured.

The risk of recurrence cancer is not the single issue. For many years, the link between kidney cancer and the risk of developing other cancers has been observed. Although the link still remains puzzling, some survivors of kidney cancer develop another new primary cancer called a second cancer.

According to the American Cancer Society, this second cancer is likely to be:

1. Thyroid cancer.
2. Prostate cancer.
3. Ureter cancer. Ureters are two tubes that carry urine from the two kidneys to the bladder.
4. Melanoma of the skin.
5. And even a second kidney cancer, but it is not the same to the first cancer coming back.

However cancer survivors could develop any type of second cancer. How about bladder carcinoma?

Survivors of kidney cancer are also at increased risk of developing bladder cancer. Although this issue is not fully known, but there are some possible explanations to explain this link.

Bladder and kidneys are essential parts of the urinary system. The distance of the two organs is pretty close. That’s why sometimes they can affect each other. And this also could be one of the answers to explain why sometimes having kidney cancer increases the risk of a new second cancer in the bladder.

If you’re a cancer survivor, there is no guarantee that you will not have another cancer after following the treatment. Therefore after completing treatment, it’s always important to regularly see your doctor and check any sign of the recurrence cancer (including for another new cancer). But in general, any additional tests for a second cancer are not recommended in patients without symptoms.

It’s also important for any cancer survivors to adopt healthy lifestyles as much as possible so their chance of having the recurrence cancer or any second cancers can be eliminated. The main ones include:

1. Some malignances are linked to obesity. If you’re obese or overweight, achieve your healthy weight and keep it off!
2. Go with regular exercise and turn it into your healthy lifestyle. Adopting a physical active lifestyle can provide a lot of benefits.
3. Adopt healthy-balanced diet, particularly with emphasis on plant foods.
4. Avoid smoking, including secondhand smoke!
5. If you drink, drink alcohol only in moderation!

For more guidance and assistance, talk with your doctor!