Statistics of Bladder Cancer

Some people use statistics to try to figure out their chance of getting cancer or of being cured. However, statistics only show what happens to large groups of people. Because no two people are alike, you cannot use them to predict what might happen to you.

The following are some 2012 U.S. statistics from the American Cancer Society about bladder cancer:

• Bladder cancer is the fourth most common form of cancer among men.

• In 2012, roughly 74,000 people will be told they have this type of cancer.

• Bladder cancer affects nearly four times as many men as women. It is almost two times more likely to occur in white men than in African-American men.

• Smoking is the greatest risk factor for bladder cancer. Smokers are about four times as likely to get bladder cancer compared to nonsmokers. In fact, smoking is estimated to cause about half of all bladder cancer cases in both men and women.

• It is estimated that almost 15,000 people will die of bladder cancer in 2012.