Re: Blood work/questions about prostate cancer

[Guest guest]

Two very useful tests, easily done via a simple Urine sample can reveal cancer

at a high percentage of accuracy with nothing being 100%. Tests are tests and

do not always reveal cancers. Better than a simple urine sample, a bladder

washing is probably more accurate that being done via use of a Cystoscope. A

Urine Cytology discovered cancer cells in me thought a CT-Scan missed it as well

as a visual Cystoscopy exam that missed it.

Urine cytology

The urine is examined under a microscope to see if it contains any cancer or

pre-cancer cells. Cytology is also done on any bladder washings taken when the

Cystoscopy was done. Although cytology can help find some cancers, this test is

not perfect. Not finding cancer on this test doesn't always mean you are cancer

free.

Urine culture

For a urine culture, a sample of urine is put into a dish in the lab to allow

any bacteria that are present to grow. Because it can take time for the bacteria

to grow, it may take a few days to get the results of this test. This test is

done to make sure that the urine is not infected. Infections and bladder cancers

can cause similar symptoms.

Tumor marker studies

There are a number of different urine tests that look for specific substances

released by bladder cancer cells. These include the test for NMP22 (discussed in

the section, " Can bladder cancer be found early? " ). Some doctors find these

tests useful, but most feel that Cystoscopy is still the best way to find

bladder cancer.

From: Barbara

Subject: [ ] Blood work/questions about prostate cancer

Can someone please tell me what type of blood work to ask for to determind if

there's any advancement of bladder carcinoma or possibly lung cancer?

I've asked my family Dr. about blood work but he tells me that there's none. I

want to call a Dr. who will do blood work for me soon but want to know what to

ask for.