Urothelial carcinoma in a child

Urothelial carcinoma of the bladder occurs rarely in the first 2 decades of life. We report a case of a 12 year-old child that presented with a Ta grade II/III urothelial carcinoma of the bladder.

We describe its clinical presentation and diagnostic procedures as well as treatment and follow-up. Finally, we review the literature to analyze the etiology, treatment, and surveillance of urothelial carcinoma in the pediatric population.

Since 1950, there are less than 100 cases of urothelial carcinoma reported in patients less than 30 years, and even less in children and adolescents. Most of the small series describe these tumors as being characteristically superficial and low grade (I-ll). This child presented with silent macroscopic hematuria and an MRI revealed a solid and papillary mass measuring 2.7 cm. A cystoscopy and resection of the tumor confirmed the diagnosis. A re-resection at two months confirmed no residual tumor in the bladder.

There is no established criteria for the etiology, treatment, and surveillance of urothelial carcinoma in the pediatric population. Children with gross hematuria as the presenting complaint should undergo a complete evaluation to rule out the presence of urothelial carcinoma.