Current Concepts in the Management of Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer

Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer in the world. Twenty to twenty-five percent of all newly diagnosed bladder cancers are muscle invasive in nature, and further, 20–25% of patients who are diagnosed with high-risk non-muscle invasive disease will eventually progress to muscle invasive disease in due course of time irrespective of adjuvant intravesical therapies. Availability of newer imaging modalities improves appropriate identification of patients with muscle invasive disease. Radical cystectomy remains the mainstay of treatment for management of muscle invasive disease. Availability of neoadjuvant chemotherapy has improved overall survival. Risk stratification systems are now in consideration to identify patients who benefit maximally from neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Urinary diversion is a major cause of morbidity in these patients, and several strategies are being employed to reduce morbidity. In this article, we review available literature on various aspects of management of muscle invasive disease.