En bloc transurethral resection of bladder lesions: a trick to retrieve specimens up to 4.5 cm

The present technique maintains the integrity of voluminous lesions during extraction. Pathological analysis is consequently improved and a proper evaluation of the surgical margins is also possible. Papillary lesions of up to 4.5 cm are amenable to en bloc resection and extraction, while solid lesions comply less well with the urethra and sometimes are very difficult to extract. Nevertheless, the main limitation of the technique remains that lesions originating from the bladder neck are not amenable to en bloc resection,while particular attention should be paid during resection of lesions involving the ureteric orifice to avoid ureteric stripping.