Age is a factor. The cancer is relatively rare in people under age 40 (less than 1% of cancers) but appears more frequently in those 60 and older. Most bladder cancers are diagnosed in people in their late 60s. Whites are 1.5 times more likely to develop the cancer than other races. Asians are at the least risk. Men are more than twice as likely as women to develop bladder cancer. People whose families have a history of bladder cancer are at greater risk. These people do not inherit the cancer. Rather they inherit a certain susceptibility to the disease.
Chronic urinary infection, kidney and bladder stones, and chronic bladder infections tend to raise the risk of bladder cancer. Environmental factors, such as arsenic in drinking water, and chemicals involved in specific occupations increase risks. The cancer is seen more frequently in hairdressers, machinists, printers, painters, truck drivers and people who work in rubber, chemical, textile, metal and leather industries.
Smoking creates the greatest risk. The National Cancer Institute estimates that smoking may be responsible for 48% of bladder cancer deaths among men and 28% of such deaths among women.
