Urine test detects recurrent bladder cancer

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Measurement of a specific protein in urine can help the diagnosis of recurrent bladder cancer.
Bladder cancer is the fifth most common malignancy in the US. It is a disease that tends to recur so careful monitoring is needed after treatment. Cystoscopy - visual examination with a viewing instrument - does not detect all bladder cancers. Cell analysis is another approach, but is not very sensitive.

Researchers at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston now report on a non-invasive urine test, based on detection of a protein called NMP22, which can be done in the doctor's office. They looked at 668 patients with a history of bladder cancer. In 103, a recurrent cancer was detected. Cystoscopy picked up 91.3 per cent of the cancers, and combining this with the urine test picked up 99 per cent of them. The NMP22 test detected eight of nine cancers not seen on cystoscopy - seven of which were high grade. Clearly this urine test has an important role to play in the detection of recurrent bladder cancer.

Source
Journal of the American Medical Association 18th January 2006 Volume 295 pages 299-305