Small cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder: A case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Small cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder (SCBC) is a type of rare malignant tumor of the urinary tract. As it does not have specific symptoms and its epidemiological features are similar to transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder, it is often misdiagnosed. SCBC is highly aggressive, metastasizes very early and has a poor prognosis, and consequently, it has become a focus for urological surgeons and oncologists. An 82-year-old male visited the Department of Urinary Surgery, in the Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical College (Zhanjiang, China), due to gross hematuria that had persisted for one week. Abdominal computed tomography showed a neoplasm of ~6×6×7 cm on the anterior wall of the bladder. The initial diagnosis was of uroepithelial cell carcinoma of the bladder and surgery was performed to remove the tumor. However, the subsequent pathological examination suggested that the tumor was an SCBC. Small cell carcinoma is a highly malignant disease, with a high mortality rate, and it rarely occurs in the bladder. Upon review of a large number of studies, SCBC was not found to present with specific symptoms, making the early diagnosis of the disease difficult, however, commonly occurring symptoms included dysuria, painless gross hematuria and urinary tract obstruction.

Small cell carcinoma of the bladder with coexisting prostate adenocarcinoma: two cases report and literature review

“…Radical cystectomy plus chemotherapy is the most widely used treatment for localized SCCB. At present, cisplatin, cyclophosphamide, VP16 and Adriamycin are frequently used and combined regimen is proven better than monotherapy [20]. Mixed SCCB had a good response to the MVAC protocol (methotrexate + vincristine + adriamycin + cisplatin), while pure SCCB responded to cisplatin-etoposide or ifosfamide/adriamycin regimen better.…”

Mixed Adenocarcinomatous and Neuroendocrine Tumor of the Urinary Bladder With Concomitant Carcinoma In Situ: A Case Report With a Comprehensive Immunohistochemical Analysis and Review of the Literature

“…The multipotential tumor stem cell theory is probably the most dominant, since neuroendocrine tumors often coexist with conventional urothelial carcinoma, and some authors could demonstrate concordant genetic alterations between neuroendocrine tumors and coexisting urothelial carcinoma. [22][23][24] The latest case of a MANEC of the urinary bladder was described by Eckstein et al They report prominent cystitis cystica et glandularis as well as intestinal metaplasia with atypia, surrounding the tumor. 12 They draw the conclusion that MANECs of the urinary bladder develop from primary ACs of the urinary bladder or the urachus.…”

“…The multipotential tumor stem cell theory is probably the most dominant, since neuroendocrine tumors often coexist with conventional urothelial carcinoma, and some authors could demonstrate concordant genetic alterations between neuroendocrine tumors and coexisting urothelial carcinoma. 22-24…”