A 60 yr old chronic smoker presents with painless gross hematuria of 1 day duration. Which is the investigation of choice to know the cause of hematuria?
High-Yield Explanation
A chronic smoker with painless gross hematuria should be suspected as having bladder cancer. The most common form of bladder cancer is transitional cell carcinoma (TCC). Tobacco use, followed by occupational exposure to various carcinogenic materials such as automobile exhaust or industrial solvents are the most frequent risk factors. Hematuria is the presenting symptom in 85-90% of patients with bladder cancer. It may be gross or microscopic, intermittent rather than constant. Exfoliated cells from both normal and neoplastic urothelium can be readily identified in voided urine. Ref: Scher H.I., Motzer R.J. (2012). Chapter 94. Bladder and Renal Cell Carcinomas. In D.L. Longo, A.S. Fauci, D.L. Kasper, S.L. Hauser, J.L. Jameson, J. Loscalzo (Eds), Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 18e.