Urethral Cancer

Urethral Cancer Treatment

Urethral Cancer Treatment – Treatment for Urethral Cancer

Treatment for urethral cancer depends on how far along the urethral cancer has gotten location of the disease, and the urethral cancer patient’s age, sex, and overall health. Urethral cancer treatment options include chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. Because urethral cancer is often invasive, surgery for urethral cancer is the primary method of treatment. Chemotherapy and radiation are often used as adjuvant urethral cancer treatment therapies.

Surgery as Treatment for Urethral Cancer

Surgical urethral cancer treatment options depend on the stage and location of the urethral cancer. Surgery is usually performed under general anesthesia and is a pretty common form of urethral cancer treatment. Early urethral cancer is treated using fulguration (destruction of cancer cells using high-frequency electric current) and laser therapy (destruction of cancer cells using a narrow beam of intense light) for the treatment of urethral cancer.

Procedures performed for advanced cases include the following:

  • Removal of the bladder and urethra (cystourethrectomy)
  • Removal of part of the penis (partial penectomy)
  • Removal of the penis, urethra, and penile root (radical penectomy)
  • Removal of the bladder and prostate (cystoprostatectomy)
  • Removal of cancerous lymph nodes (lymph node dissection)
  • Removal of the bladder, urethra, and vagina (anterior exenteration)

If partial penectomy, radical penectomy, or anterior exenteration is required, additional surgical procedures are performed to reconstruct the reproductive organs left behind from advanced urethral cancer. If the bladder and urethra are removed, a urinary diversion is performed to allow for the passage of urine.

Complications of surgery include the following:

  • Adverse reaction to anesthesia
  • Bowel obstruction
  • Incontinence
  • Infection
  • Mortality (approximately 1–2% of cases)
  • Recurrence (in approximately 50% of cases)
  • Tissue death (necrosis)
  • Urethral narrowing (stricture) or abnormal passage (fistula)

Radiation as Treatment for Urethral Cancer

Radiation may be used along with surgery in advanced urethral cancer treatment, or as primary treatment for early urethral cancer that is noninvasive. Radiation uses high-energy rays from a machine outside the body (called external beam radiation) or surgically implanted radioactive seeds or pellets (called brachytherapy) to destroy the urethral cancer cells. External radiation and brachytherapy are sometimes used together as forms of urethral cancer treatments.

External beam radiation usually involves treatment 5 days a week for approximately 6 weeks on the area of the urethral cancer. Brachytherapy involves surgical implantation of the seeds, which become inactive over time and remain in place.

Side effects of radiation for urethral cancer treatments are caused by the destruction of healthy tissue and include the following:

  • Abnormal healing resulting in abnormal passage in the urethra (fistula)
  • Burning of the skin (similar to sunburn)
  • Diarrhea
  • Fatigue
  • Inflammation of the bladder (cystitis)
  • Narrowing of the urethra (stricture; causing urination difficulty)
  • Nausea

Chemotherapy as a form of Urethral Cancer Treatment

Chemotherapy involves using drugs to destroy urethral cancer cells. It is a systemic urethral cancer treatment (i.e., destroys urethral cancer cells throughout the body) that is administered orally or intravenously (through a vein; IV). Medications are often used in combination to destroy urethral cancer that has metastasized. Commonly used drugs include cisplatin (Platinol®), vincristine (Oncovin®), and methotrexate (Trexall®).

Side effects include the following:

  • Anemia (causing fatigue, weakness)
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Loss of appetite (anorexia)
  • Hair loss (alopecia)
  • Mouth sores
  • Increased risk for infection
  • Shortness of breath
  • Excessive bleeding and bruising

Urethral Cancer Treatment and Prognosis

Five-year survival rates for noninvasive urethral cancer treated surgically or with radiation are approximately 60%. Recurrence rates for invasive urethral cancer treated with surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation combined are higher than 50%. Early diagnosis and urethral cancer treatment offers the best chance for cure.

Urethral Cancer

Urethritis Symptoms – Urethral Cancer Symptoms

Many people may suffer from a medical condition known as urethritis or urethral cancer or urethral tumor at some moment in their life. The condition happens with bladder pain when there’s an infection in a portion of the urinary track known as the urethra. This part of urinary system is responsible for sending urine from the bladder to the expelling area of the body where urine is is completely removed from the urethral.

When an infection invades the urethral cannal of the urological system, inflammation can occur. When someone is affected by this issue, the most common urethral symptom can be difficulty and even pain when urinating or while attempting to eliminate fluids from the urethra. In this article, you will be introduced to important information pertaining to urethritis, urethral tumor and urethral cancer.

Causes of Urethritis or Urethral Cancer Symptoms – Male and Female Urethra Cancer

There are many potential causes of urethritis and Urethral Cancer Symptoms. Medical professionals have established that this type of urinary track problem may be caused by various types of bacterium, an assortment of fungi, and even various types of viruses involved with the urethral track.

While there are types of bacterium and fungi that have been found to be helpful to the human body and actually live in the gastrointestinal tract of the body, it has been established that an over abundance of these bacterium and fungi could invade the urethra and cause medical complications.

In addition to this, many individuals have acquired male and female urethritis by engaging in sexual activities with a partner that has the condition. Examples of organisms that are transmitted during sexual activity include “Neisseria Gonorrhoeae”, “Chlamydia”, and the “Herpes Simplex Virus”.

Symptoms

There are symptoms that may be experienced when an individual experiences urethritis. Not all individuals that suffer from this urinary complication and bladder pain will experience symptoms. If a sufferer does experience issues as a direct result of an infection and inflammation in the male and female urethra, it is common for the symptom of pain to be experienced during urination.

Many individuals describe this pain as a dull, aching pain while others describe it as the feeling of intense pressure or sharp, shooting pains. Many individuals that suffer from this type of infection find that they suffer from a frequent need to urinate during the day and in the night hours. If an individual acquires this condition as a direct result of a sexually transmitted disease, the symptoms mentioned here may be accompanied by symptoms that are associated with the actual STD.

Potential Complications Infection of the Male and Female Urethra

There are many potential complications associated with infections that originate and grow in the urethra. In some instances, bladder pain, the infection and inflammation experienced in the urethra may cause the space within this component of the urinary system to narrow drastically and cause urethral tumors to grow. Many individuals may also develop infections in the other components of the urinary system.

It is common for the bladder and/or the kidneys to become infected with urethral tumorsand cause bladder pain, the infection that started in the urethra. If you feel as if you have an infection in the male and female urethra, you should visit your doctor for a complete evaluation. If a diagnosis is confirmed there are treatments available that will prevent potential complications such as those outlined here.

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