[Palliative ileal conduit in inoperable cancer of the urinary bladder]

A retrospective study is presented of 19 patients with inoperable urinary bladder carcinoma in which urinary diversion was performed by ileal conduit without cystectomy. The postoperative mortality rate was 10.5% and the incidence of complications was 16%. The average time of survival was 5.1 months and varied from between one and 23 months. According to the literature these results are no better than those in patients undergoing no therapy at all. It is, thus, our opinion that palliative ileal conduit should not be considered a suitable method for urinary diversion in patients with advanced carcinoma of the urinary bladder.