Effcacy and safety of ND:YAG laser energy in the treatment of non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer of diffcult-to-access localization: A case report

Background. Bladder cancer is the 10th most common cancer worldwide and the most common malignancy of the urinary tract. Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer accounts for approximately 80 % of cases. Tumors localized in the anterior bladder wall may be challenging to resect completely due to diffcult visual access. Here we present a case of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer localized in a diffcult-to-access area.
Case report. A 67-year-old patient with a mass on the anterior wall of the bladder underwent Nd:YAG laser ablation of non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer of diffcult localization in the urological hospital of the Russian Railways-Medicine Central Clinical Hospital. The previous histological examination of the biopsy specimen of the bladder mass reveled bladder cancer. The superfcial tumor growth was confrmed by preoperative MRI fndings. The Nd:YAG laser with a wavelength of 1064 nm, a power of 40 W and an energy density of 100 J/cm² was used. The laser beam was delivered through a side fre light guide. After surgery, a two-way catheter was inserted into the bladder for 12 hours. No intraoperative and postoperative complications were detected. Endoscopic evaluation of the effectiveness of the surgical stage was carried out at intervals of 3, 6 and 12 months from the date of surgery. Control cystoscopy revealed no cancer recurrence.
Conclusion. Our clinical case demonstrated the high effcacy and safety of Nd:YAG laser ablation in the treatment of a patient with non-invasive bladder cancer located on the anterior wall of the bladder.

1. Leslie S.W., Soon-Sutton T.L., Aeddula N.R. Bladder Cancer. 2024. StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2026. [cited 01.02.2026]. URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536923/.

2. Bray F., Laversanne M., Sung H., Ferlay J., Siegel R.L., Soerjomataram I., Jemal A. Global cancer statistics 2022: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2024; 74(3): 229–63. doi: 10.3322/caac.21834.

3. Saginala K., Barsouk A., Aluru J.S., Rawla P., Padala S.A., Barsouk A. Epidemiology of Bladder Cancer. Med Sci (Basel). 2020; 8(1): 15. doi: 10.3390/medsci8010015.

4. Al-Zalabani A.H., Stewart K.F., Wesselius A., Schols A.M., Zeegers M.P. Modifable risk factors for the prevention of bladder cancer: a systematic review of meta-analyses. Eur J Epidemiol. 2016; 31(9): 811–51. doi: 10.1007/s10654-016-0138-6.

5. Calderone C., Taylor J.M. Urothelial cancer of the bladder: treatment of early stage disease. Handbook of Prostate Cancer and Other Genitourinary Malignancies. Ed. T.G. Hayes, M.P. Mims, J.M. Taylor. New York. Demos Medical, 2017. P. 157–175. ISBN: 978-1-62070-109-6. e-book ISBN: 978-1-61705-286-6.

6. Gontero P., Birtle A., Capoun O., Compérat E., Dominguez-Escrig J.L., Liedberg F., Mariappan P., Masson-Lecomte A., Mostafd H.A., Pradere B., Rai B.P., van Rhijn B.W.G., Seisen T., Shariat S.F., Soria F., Soukup V., Wood R., Xylinas E.N. European Association of Urology Guidelines on Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer (TaT1 and Carcinoma In Situ)-A Summary of the 2024 Guidelines Update. Eur Urol. 2024; 86(6): 531–49. doi: 10.1016/j.eururo.2024.07.027.

7. Shore N.D., Palou Redorta J., Robert G., Hutson T.E., Cesari R., Hariharan S., Rodríguez Faba Ó., Briganti A., Steinberg G.D. Non-muscleinvasive bladder cancer: An overview of potential new treatment options. Urol Oncol. 2021; 39(10): 642–63. doi: 10.1016/j.urolonc.2021.05.015.

8. Burger M., Catto J.W., Dalbagni G., Grossman H.B., Herr H., Karakiewicz P., Kassouf W., Kiemeney L.A., La Vecchia C., Shariat S., Lotan Y. Epidemiology and risk factors of urothelial bladder cancer. Eur Urol. 2013; 63(2): 234–41. doi: 10.1016/j.eururo.2012.07.033.

9. Matulewicz R.S., Steinberg G.D. Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer: Overview and Contemporary Treatment Landscape of Neoadjuvant Chemoablative Therapies. Rev Urol. 2020; 22(2): 43–51.

10. Nicoletti R., Gauhar V., Castellani D., Enikeev D., Herrmann T.R.W., Teoh J.Y. Current Techniques for En Bloc Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumor: A Hands-on Guide Through the Energy Landscape. Eur Urol Focus. 2023; 9(4): 567–70. doi: 10.1016/j.euf.2023.04.007.

11. Teodorovich O.V., Shatokhin M.N., Abdullaev M., Krasnov A.V., Khommyatov M.R. Interstitial laser coagulation in the management of urothelial papillary carcinoma of the renal pelvis. Urology. 2018; (4): 122–26. (in Russia). doi: 10.18565/urology.2018.4.122-126. EDN: YLVSHR.

12. Teodorovich O.V., Gameeva E.V., Suleymanov S.I., Shatokhin M.N., Borisenko G.G., Babkin A.S. Evaluation of the clinical efectiveness of transurethral bipolar surgery and laser technologies in treatment of patients with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer. Urology Reports. 2024; 14(4): 373–80. (in Russian). doi: 10.17816/uroved632520. EDN: FQIGKP.