MAYWOOD, IL – Loyola Medicine uses the latest technologies to diagnose and treat bladder cancer, the fourth most common cancer in men.
Each year in the United States, about 80,000 new cases of bladder cancer are diagnosed. About 90 percent of cases are urothelial carcinomas – cancers that start in the urothelial cells that line the inside of the bladder. The most common risk factor is smoking.
At Loyola, bladder cancer is treated by an integrated team of experts including, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists and urologists. Loyola offers the full spectrum of treatments for every stage of bladder cancer, including radical cystectomy (removal of the bladder and lymph nodes). Loyola offers both robotic surgery and traditional open surgery.
Loyola’s department of urology has a strong track record of conducting clinical trials and translational research in urologic oncology. Loyola urologists perform more than 100 radical cystectomies per year and are thought leaders in the field.
Three Loyola urologists, Marcus Quek, MD, Gopal Gupta, MD and Alex Gorbonos, MD, are co-authors of a recent landmark study that found that robotic surgery is as effective as traditional open surgery in treating bladder cancer.
Loyola is among 15 centers that participated in the nationwide trial of 350 patients, who were randomly assigned to undergo robotic surgery or open surgery to remove cancerous bladders. After two years, there was no significant difference between the two groups in survival without disease progression. Robotic surgery was associated with less blood loss and shorter hospital stays, but longer surgeries. The study was published in the journal Lancet.
Three main techniques are used to replace the bladder: construct a new bladder (neobladder) from the patient's own intestine; create a pouch inside the body to act as an artificial bladder; or place a bag outside the body to collect urine.
In addition to offering both open and robotic radical cystectomies, Loyola surgeons perform all three bladder-replacement techniques. There are pros and cons to each surgical technique, and Loyola physicians help patients decide which option best fits their lifestyle and health status.
“Loyola has become a center of excellence for bladder cancer care,” Dr. Quek said. “We offer a multidisciplinary approach to the treatment of our patients.”
Dr. Gupta added that working at Loyola “gives us the ability to see these patients, to treat them and to employ technology to better their outcomes and better their lives.”
Charles Clark, a patient of Dr. Gupta’s, is a good example. Five years after surgery, Mr. Clark remains active and cancer-free, with an excellent prognosis.
“The care at Loyola has been fantastic,” Mr. Clark said.
Mrs. Clark’s wife, Naomi Clark, said Mr. Clark’s treatments have given her great faith in Loyola. “They will help you there, not only physically, but spiritually,” she said.
About Loyola Medicine
Loyola Medicine, a member of Trinity Health, is a nationally ranked academic, quaternary care system based in Chicago's western suburbs. The three-hospital system includes Loyola University Medical Center (LUMC), Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, MacNeal Hospital, as well as convenient locations offering primary care, specialty care and immediate care services from nearly 2,000 physicians throughout Cook, Will and DuPage counties. LUMC is a 547-licensed-bed hospital in Maywood that includes the William G. and Mary A. Ryan Center for Heart & Vascular Medicine, the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, the John L. Keeley, MD, Emergency Department, a Level 1 trauma center, Illinois's largest burn center, the Nancy W. Knowles Orthopaedic Institute, a certified comprehensive stroke center, transplant center and a children’s hospital. Having delivered compassionate care for over 50 years, Loyola also trains the next generation of caregivers through its academic affiliation with Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine and Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.
For more information, visit loyolamedicine.org. You can also follow Loyola Medicine on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or X (formerly known as Twitter).
About Trinity Health
Trinity Health is one of the largest not-for-profit, faith-based health care systems in the nation. It is a family of 127,000 colleagues and more than 38,300 physicians and clinicians caring for diverse communities across 26 states. Nationally recognized for care and experience, the Trinity Health system includes 93 hospitals, 107 continuing care locations, the second largest PACE program in the country, 142 urgent care locations and many other health and well-being services. In fiscal year 2024, the Livonia, Michigan-based health system invested $1.3 billion in its communities in the form of charity care and other community benefit programs. For more information, visit us at www.trinity-health.org, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and X (formerly known as Twitter).