Reviewing QOL Strategies/Considerations Following Bladder Cancer Surgery

Preserving quality of life starts before bladder-preserving surgery begins, according to Armine K. Smith, MD.

In an interview with CancerNetwork®, Smith, assistant professor of Urology and director of Urologic Oncology at Johns Hopkins Sibley Memorial Hospital, discussed potential strategies and considerations regarding the enhancement or preservation of quality of life for patients following surgery for bladder cancer.

Smith began by suggesting that quality of life preservation starts with proper patient allocation to the optimal treatment regimen, particularly among those with non-invasive bladder cancer. Additionally, she expressed that the employment of organ and nerve preservation, as well as continent urinary diversions, may help in improving quality of life considerations for those who are undergoing surgery for bladder cancer.

Furthermore, she touched upon prehabilitation as a means of proactively preparing patients for optimal surgical outcomes, including post-operation quality-of-life considerations, which, according to Smith, includes optimizing nutrition and undergoing physical prehabilitation. Subsequently, pairing patients with the appropriate physical and pelvic floor therapists following surgery can help factor into preserving quality of life.

Transcript:

Preserving quality of life starts by selecting the proper patient for the proper treatment. That is imperative for those who are undergoing treatments for non-invasive bladder cancer––finding the proper treatment that will at least optimize the outcomes and the cure potential for this cancer. For those who require bladder preservation, employing organ preservation, nerve preservation, and continent urinary diversions are some of the things that we can start listing.

Additionally, comprehensive prehabilitation in patients, including nutritional optimization [and] physical prehabilitation before surgery, optimizing them for surgery plays a big role. Even after the surgery, putting them in touch with the proper physical therapists and pelvic floor therapists, etc. All of these things factor into having as good of a quality of life after these treatments as possible.