Bladder Cancer in Women: Why It’s Often Missed

Bladder cancer is one of several genitourinary cancers that can affect men or women, though it’s more common in men. But unlike men, women often go undiagnosed for a long time and don’t get the early care that can lead to a better outcome. 

Board-certified oncologists at Arizona Center for Cancer Care are dedicated to diagnosing and treating bladder cancer in women as early and effectively as possible. Our offices are located in Avondale, Chandler, Gilbert, Glendale, Mesa, Phoenix, Scottsdale, Surprise, Anthem, Peoria, Fountain Hills, Wickenburg, Apache Junction, Sun City, Sun City West, Goodyear, and Tempe, Arizona.

In this article, we’ll discuss why bladder cancer in women is often missed and what you can do to catch it early. 

Delayed diagnosis is common

Almost 40% of women with bladder cancer are initially misdiagnosed with some other condition. This paves the way for bladder cancer to worsen or spread as these women don’t start treatment as early as possible. 

This is just one part of the problem — many women don’t seek help at all because they ignore or brush off the early signs of bladder cancer. 

Symptoms you might ignore

Blood in urine is the most common symptom of bladder cancer in women, but you might mistake it for a urinary tract infection (UTI), your period, or abnormal uterine bleeding between periods. In some cases, you can’t see blood cells in your urine with the naked eye because there are so few of them. 

Some other bladder cancer symptoms you might ignore or misinterpret are:

• Abdominal pain
• Low back pain
• Unexplained weight loss
• Fatigue or tiredness

Almost a third of women with bladder cancer experience other symptoms similar to a UTI, including frequent urination or burning. 

When to seek help

The symptoms of bladder cancer could be signs of something else, but you shouldn’t ignore them either way. 

Let your doctor know if you experience any of the common bladder cancer symptoms in women, and if they persist beyond treatment for UTIs and other conditions they might be mistaken for. 

Risk factors to know

Even if you don’t have bladder cancer symptoms currently, you can take steps today to lower your bladder cancer risk. Some risk factors, like your family history, are outside of your control. Others are behavior-related. 

To lower your risk for bladder cancer, you should:

• Stop smoking immediately
• Follow safety precautions at work, especially when working with industrial chemicals
• Drink plenty of water
• Talk to your doctor about proper medication and supplement dosages

You can develop bladder cancer at any age, but your risk goes up as you get older. 

Get in touch 

For more information on bladder cancer in women and how we treat it, contact your nearest Arizona Center for Cancer Care or request an appointment online.