Objective To document the workload of bladder cancer surveillance on the Br
itish urologist,
Methods Thirty-one consultant urologists serving a population of 4.8 millio
n were sent postal questionnaires eliciting their views on the management o
f superficial bladder cancer. The number, type and outcome of cystoscopies
performed over a 6-week period throughout the region was then assessed pros
pectively.
Results One person in 1450 in the South-west region is undergoing follow-up
for bladder cancer. Of the responding consultants, 36% would give a single
dose of intravesical chemotherapy within 24 h of resection for a G1/2 pTa
tumour and 84% would perform the first check cystoscopy at 3-4 months. Over
the 6-week period of the study, 696 cystoscopies were performed; there was
considerable variation among centres in the choice of cystoscopy type, wit
h 3-80% being rigid cystoscopies. Overall, there was a positive finding in
31% of the assessments.
Conclusion This study documents the practice of a significant number of UK
urologists in the management of superficial bladder cancer. There are consi
derable variations among individuals in the type and timing of check cystos
copy.