Publication:

Histological pattern of bladder cancer at a tertiary hospital in North Western Nigeria: an update

Background An update on the histopathological patterns of bladder cancer in our environment is pertinent to determine the current prevalent histological type and if there is worsening schistosomal infestation as these can guide the management of bladder cancer.

Methods This is a prospective study of patients managed for bladder cancer at the urology unit, department of surgery, Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Nigeria between 02 February 2018 and 01 February 2019. Histology of biopsy specimens were done at the histopathology department of Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto. Data was collected using a structured proforma and analyzed using statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) version 20.0.

Results A total of 65 patients were recruited into the study with mean age of 51.9 years and standard deviation of ±14.7. The male to female ratio was 6:1 and the commonest occupation of the patients was farming (41.5%). A total of 46 patients (70.8%) had squamous cell carcinoma following histology, followed by transitional cell carcinoma seen in 9.2% of patients and adenocarcinoma seen in 3.1% of patients. Schistosoma ova was seen in 13.8% of the patients while 3.1% of the patients had cystitis cystica.

Conclusions The commonest histological type of bladder cancer in our environment is squamous cell carcinoma. In this current study, the percentage of patients with squamous cell carcinoma is higher than the previously reported percentages while the percentage of patients with transitional cell carcinoma is lower than the previously reported percentages thus revealing worsening schistosomal infestation in our environment.