The number of incident cases of bladder cancer in the eight major markets is set to increase, with men and over-60s most at risk, according to a new report.

GlobalData’s 'Bladder Cancer – Epidemiology Forecast to 2033' report has found that the diagnosed incident cases of bladder cancer in China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, the UK and the US will observe an annual growth rate (AGR) of 2.24% from 0.28 million in 2023 to 0.34 million in 2033.

GlobalData is Pharmaceutical Technology’s parent company.

Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer globally and the sixth most common among men. Of the eight major markets, the report stated that the highest number of diagnosed incident cases in 2033 will be in the US, which will experience 98,184 diagnosed incident cases. France will have the lowest number, meanwhile, with 18,425 cases.

Of the expected rise in incident cases, the report states: “GlobalData epidemiologists attribute the increase in the diagnosed incident cases and five-year diagnosed prevalent cases to a certain extent with the moderately rising trend in the incidence rates in the eight major markets, combined with underlying demographic changes in the respective markets.”

Fortunately, bladder cancer diagnosis often takes place early, using a cystoscopy. In 2023, around 45% of the incident cases of bladder cancer were diagnosed in the early stages by AJCC TNM staging. This is in comparison to 6% of cases which experienced delayed diagnosis.

Despite the frequency of early diagnosis, relapse and recurrence rates are high for bladder cancer, and around 74% of diagnosed prevalent cases of non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) relapse or recurred to muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC).

GlobalData outlines that, in the eight major markets in 2023, NMIBC to MIBC relapse or recurrence happened in 279,253 cases. MIBC to distant metastasis relapse or recurrence took place in 53,065 cases, while MIBC to local relapse or recurrence happened in 37,615 cases. NMIBC to distant metastasis relapse or recurrence in 7,825 cases. The report notes: “This trend was consistent across all markets in the eight major markets.”

Bladder cancer disproportionately affects older adults and men. Last year, approximately 78% of bladder cancer cases affected men, and 87% of all cases were in adults over 60 years old.

Antara Bhattacharya, associate project manager on GlobalData’s epidemiology team, commented: “Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer type, and timely detection of the disease is both challenging and expensive. Diagnosis relies mainly on cystoscopy, which is an invasive procedure and is difficult in low-resource settings. Even after being diagnosed in the early stages when the disease is highly treatable, the relapse and recurrence rates are high.

“Hence, adequate research and medical interventions are needed to facilitate different medical approaches for the timely detection and treatment. Epidemiological studies focusing on bladder cancer stages with relapse or recurrence can improve treatment outcomes. Additionally, bladder cancer treatment requires a multifaceted approach that integrates medical and surgical interventions, lifestyle modifications, ongoing support, along with immunotherapy, targeted therapy, clinical trials, and follow-up care.”