Lower back pain
Pain in the lower back can be a potential alarming symptom of bladder cancer, and it is more prevalent in patients who are suffering from advanced or metastatic bladder cancer. The symptom less likely to be considered in early stage cancer patients.
If a person suffers from persistent lower back pain without any other symptoms, then your doctor may first rule out other possible causes that can cause low back pain. However, if low back pain is accompanied by other common symptoms like change in frequency of urination and hematuria, your doctor may perform series of investigations to diagnose the cause. In patients with lower back pain, the pain often usually occurs on only one side of the body.
After successful diagnosis of bladder cancer, further testing is also done to determine the extent of metastasis. It is important to check whether the bladder cancer cells have metastasized to other organs or other parts of the body or not. These may include a CT (CAT) scan, an MRI, x-rays, and bone scans. This helps the doctor to stage the tumor after which proper management plan is devised tailored to the needs of the patient.