Program Director: Karim Chamie, MD, MSHS
Medical Director: Alexandra Drakaki, MD
Being diagnosed with bladder cancer is often the beginning of a stressful and confusing time in a person's life. Obtaining information about the disease and treatment options can often help reduce this stress and aid in the personal decision-making process. The UCLA Institute of Urologic Oncology (the "IUO") and its multidisciplinary team of world-renown physicians and scientists are working together as a team to personalize patient care and to develop revolutionary treatments for men and women diagnosed with bladder cancer.
According to the American Cancer Society, this year approximately 77,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with bladder cancer and about 16,390 people will die from this disease. Bladder cancer accounts for about 5% of all new cancers in the US. It is the fourth most common cancer in men, but it is less common in women.
The UCLA IUO’s Bladder Cancer Program has a multidisciplinary comprehensive program offering the latest treatments and compassionate, individualized care. Patients of the IUO have the benefit of our long-held team approach to the treatment and management of bladder cancer that includes world-class urologic oncologists, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, pathologists, radiologists and our clinical trial's team of physicians and nurses.
Meet our expert team >
Innovations in Treating Bladder and Kidney Cancer
UCLA urologist, Karim Chamie, MD, MSHS, presented a live-streaming webinar to discuss new cancer treatments that do not require the unnecessary removal of the kidney or bladder. Webinar >
The UCLA IUO offers a variety of innovative treatment options to patients who have been diagnosed with bladder cancer, including standard, minimally invasive and robotic-assisted surgery, as well as clinical trials. Treatment plans are individualized to each patient’s cancer grade and stage as well as current state of health. The management of bladder cancer requires extensive collaboration among specialists. The UCLA IUO holds bi-weekly conferences with a multidisciplinary team that provides a forum with diverse, specialized perspectives for deciding upon the best option for each individual patient.
UCLA has been a pioneer in the innovative, multidisciplinary, translational approach to care, including:
Learn more about how we diagnose and treat bladder cancer >
Breakthroughs in immunotherapy are revolutionizing the treatment of genitourinary cancer, with new treatment options imminent for patients with bladder cancer. UCLA was an early innovator in treatments that bring the patient’s immune system to bear against cancer. With more than 25 years of experience, the UCLA Institute of Urologic Oncology maintains one of the nation’s largest immunotherapy treatment and research programs, leading to ground-breaking clinical trials offered to our UCLA patients.
Learn more about our pioneering research >
A first-of-its-kind immunotherapy clinical trial involving bladder cancer, now open and enrolling patients, is exploring the ideal treatment sequence — which patients should receive immunotherapy as a first-line therapy and which should get the treatment after chemotherapy or surgery.
Join a bladder cancer clinical trial >
For an appointment with our UCLA IUO bladder cancer team, call (310) 794-7700.
