How to Diagnose Bladder Papilloma and How to Treat It Right?

Papilloma is a change in the epithelium of the skin or mucous membrane, in which tumors of different shapes are formed from tissue. Most often, the disease manifests itself on the body or in the genital area, but theoretically it can affect any part of the skin or mucous membrane. One of the most dangerous manifestations of papillomatosis are tumors on the internal organs, the bladder is one of them.

All papillomas are viral in nature. They develop under the influence of human papillomavirus. Almost 100 strains of HPV are known to medicine, many of which affect more than 80% of people around the globe. In fact, it

is difficult to find an adult in whose blood there would not be a single type of this virus. However, the prevalence of this infection does not mean the prevalence of the disease itself, which is called papillomatosis. In healthy people, carriage is most often observed, in which the immune system suppresses the reproduction of infectious agents and prevents the development of neoplasms. Find out how to detect the bladder papilloma and what to do with such a diagnosis.

Contents

• Causes of Papilloma Bladder
• Bladder Papilloma Symptoms
• Diagnosis of Bladder Papilloma
• Are Bladder Papillomas Cancerous?
• Bladder Papilloma Treatment

Causes of  Papilloma Bladder

Often, different skin lesions are associated with different HPV strains, but papilloma in the bladder can develop under the influence of any type of virus. First of all, people with genital warts are at risk, but the disease is also diagnosed in other patients. Provocative factors for inverted papilloma bladder doctors call the following:

• The papilloma of bladder is often found in people 40-60 years old, this is due to a decrease in immunity, which activates the human papillomavirus.
• According to statistics, men suffer from this type of papillomatosis 4 times more often than women.
• Work in the production of rubber, paints, paper and other materials.
• Constant contact with carcinogens, hazardous chemical compounds.
• Concomitant diseases of the bladder, surgery, damage to the walls of the organ.

Sometimes urologists find an urinary bladder papilloma  in the urinary tract. In fact, these are the same neoplasms as papilloma, the only difference is that their nature may not be viral. In this case, the treatment of patients with such diagnoses, as a rule, is the same.

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Bladder Papilloma Symptoms

Unfortunately, papilloma in the internal organs may not manifest themselves for a very long time and do not show any symptoms. Therefore, it is often discovered by chance during routine inspection. First, on the wall of the bladder, a fleecy tumor grows on a well-marked pedicle. Over time, and this process can take several years, the leg becomes shorter, and papilloma falls to the surface of the mucous membrane.  At the last stage of the disease, the neoplasm can grow into the wall of the organ, and the villi turn into compacted plates. And this already represents a serious danger, since such a lesion can lead to tissue degeneration and the development of oncology. In papillomatosis of this type, a person may experience the following symptoms:

• pain in the groin, lower abdomen;
• hematuria — blood in the urine;
• painful urination;
• it seems that the bladder is not fully emptied;
• frequent urination to urinate.

It must be said that the signs of villous papilloma bladder are characteristic of many diseases of the urinary tract. In addition, the human papillomavirus is more easily activated in the affected tissues — inflammation or microscopic damage can be a trigger for the development of papillomatosis. Therefore, when you have noticed these symptoms, don’t postpone consultation with a urologist. The doctor will conduct a full diagnosis and prescribe treatment, without which the infection can lead to serious complications.

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Diagnosis of Bladder Papilloma

Diagnosis is based on clinical signs. In some cases, papilloma can be detected by conducting an ultrasound examination of the bladder. But the main method to clarify the diagnosis is cystoscopy with puncture biopsy of the tumor. Diagnosis of papilloma in bladder is carried out in two directions: laboratory tests and examinations. The doctor may recommend the following examinations:

• Urine tests. This includes microhematuria, a small amount of blood in the urine that cannot be seen with the naked eye.
• Endoscopic examination, in which a thin tube with a microscopic optical camera is inserted into the urethra. The doctor examines the state of the walls of the organ and can reveal even the smallest papillomas. The method is considered the most appropriate for detecting papilloma bladder cancer.
• Ultrasound can also help detect growths on the walls of the bladder. But with this method, only formations more than 1 cm in diameter are noticeable.
• An accurate and painless study that helps to identify papillomatosis in its early stages, starting with growths of 1 mm. The disadvantages of tomography are the high cost of diagnosis and the inability to determine the nature of the pathology.
• Histology (removal of diseased tissue for cancer). It may be performed during cystoscopy or already during surgery to remove papilloma. Histology is important for choosing the right treatment and subsequent rehabilitation.

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Are Bladder Papillomas Cancerous?

Bladder cancer is a cancer that causes a malignant tumor to develop from the bladder wall. The most common histological form is transitional cell carcinoma (90%), less commonly squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. Rare malignant tumors of this localization — sarcoma, lymphoma, carcinoid. Pre-cancerous diseases are papillomas (benign epithelial tumors), bladder papillomatosis. In men, bladder cancer appears more often than women. Predominantly, the disease occurs in the age range of 40 to 60 years.

There are invasive bladder cancer and non-invasive. Invasive cancer is a severe form, with the tumor germinating through the walls of the bladder and transferring it to other organs. Non-invasive cancer has a benign course: the formation does not go beyond the bladder. It is possible to transfer form from non-invasive to invasive, that is, tumor progression. Anatomically distinguished: bladder body cancer, bladder floor cancer, bladder neck cancer.

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Bladder Papilloma Treatment

Although bladder papilloma is a benign neoplasm, it belongs to precancerous conditions and requires immediate surgical treatment. Treatment consists of transurethral (through the urethra) removal of the tumor by the method of diathermocoagulation, or by means of a laser. In the case when the papilloma reaches a large size, its surgical excision through the wall of the bladder is possible. But even with a large and wide excision, recurrence and degeneration of the tumor into cancer are sometimes possible. Therefore, patients undergoing surgery should have cystoscopy regularly twice a year. Depending on the prevalence of the process and the size of tumors, the doctor individually selects a treatment regimen. In this case, an operation of varying complexity is performed:

• Transurethral resection (TUR). The procedure is done endoscopically without cutting the abdominal cavity.
• Open operation. It is done in case of a large increase in papillomas.
• Complete removal of the bladder is carried out in extreme cases with a strong organ damage. In men, such an operation also removes the prostate and seminal vesicles, and in women, the ovaries and fallopian tubes.

Also, for papilloma of the bladder, urologists prescribe radiation therapy, which helps to destroy the tumor. However, this treatment is often associated with serious complications — patients have mucous inflammation and, as a result, there is a burning sensation and pain, body temperature rises. Therefore, radiation therapy can be supplemented with various anti-inflammatory drugs.

Unfortunately, statistics show that bladder papillomatosis recurs in 4 out of 5 cases — within 5 years after surgery or irradiation, growths appear again. Therefore, along with radical methods of therapy, urologists prescribe medication for patients. In particular, drugs are prescribed that stimulate the immune system and thereby suppress the activity of human papillomavirus.

In order to prevent disease, patients are advised to drink more water (up to 2-2.5 liters per day), go to the toilet in a timely manner, stop smoking and increase the amount of exercise. Also, for people who have been diagnosed with this type of papillomatosis, annual prophylactic examinations at the urologist are mandatory.