Each year, nearly 55,000 people in the United States learn that they have bladder cancer. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has written this booklet to help patients with bladder cancer and their families and friends better understand this disease. We hope others will read it as well to learn more about bladder cancer.

This booklet discusses symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. It also has information to help patients cope with bladder cancer.

Our knowledge about bladder cancer keeps increasing. For up-to-date information or to order this publication, call the NCI-supported Cancer Information Service (CIS) toll free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

The CIS staff uses a National Cancer Institute cancer information database called PDQ and other NCI resources to answer callers' questions. Cancer information specialists can send callers information from PDQ and other NCI materials about cancer, its treatment, and living with the disease (see Other Booklets).

Words that may be new to readers appear in italics. Definition of these and other terms related to prostate cancer can be found in the Glossary. For some words, a "sounds-like" spelling is also given.