Mental Health Status Prior to Bladder Cancer Surgery Influences Postoperative Outcomes

Removal of the bladder, or radical cystectomy (RC), is an effective treatment for locally advanced bladder cancer, but complications occur in as many as 66% of patients. A patient's mental health prior to surgery can influence postoperative outcomes. In a study in The Journal of Urology, researchers found that patients whose self-assessment of mental health was low suffered more high grade complications in the 30 days following surgery than patients with higher self-assessments.

Scott M. Gilbert, of the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, FL, said, "Prior studies have suggested that poor baseline mental health can lead to more significant postoperative complications possibly due to impaired immune response associated with higher levels of stress. This may delay both wound healing and the ability to fight infection in the postoperative state, for example. Although self-appraisal of overall well-being may mediate physiologic responses to surgery, patient-reported health status has not been extensively studied among bladder cancer patients to date, and its utility in predicting postoperative outcomes, such as complications, has not been previously examined."