Genetic Instability in Normal-Appearing and Tumor Urothelium Cells and the Role of the TP53 Gene in the Toxicogenomic Effects of Antineoplastic Drugs

Bladder cancer is one of the most common urinary neoplasms in industrialized countries, with more than 50,000 new cases diagnosed annually in Europe and North America [1,2]. In most countries of the Western world, transitional cell carcinomas (TCCs) account for 90% of the malignancies of this organ, while 5% are identified as squamous cell carcinomas and 2% as adenocarcinomas [3]. Approximately 80% of TCCs are low-grade tumors that are papil‐ lary, non-invasive and usually superficial, with stages Ta and Tis; the remaining 20% are high-grade papillary or non-papillary tumors that are often invasive or metastatic, with stages T1–T4. The five-year survival rate for TCC patients is 50%. The involvement of the bladder muscular wall signifies a worse prognosis and requires aggressive medical inter‐ vention such as radical cystectomy [4,5].