In Bladder Cancer: A Patient-Friendly Guide to Understanding Your Diagnosis and Treatment Options, Mark Schoenberg, M.D., professor and chair of urology at Montefiore and Einstein, teams up with patient David Pulver, who came to him for a second opinion when he was diagnosed in 2007, and David’s sister, Fran Pulver, a professional medical writer. The book aims to quell fears by educating patients about bladder cancer so they can understand their diagnoses and make more-informed decisions about treatment.

The book’s key chapters take readers from diagnosis (What is the grade of the cancer? the stage? the cell type? the pathology report?) to tests (cystoscopy, urine, CT scans, MRIs, and more) to the three types of bladder cancer and treatment options for them. Seventy-five percent of patients have the most common and most survivable type, in which the tumor has not invaded surrounding muscle; 20 percent of patients have muscle-invasive bladder cancer; and about 5 percent have metastatic bladder cancer.

Other chapters explain how the urinary system works; they include detailed medical illustrations and offer patients advice about choosing a doctor, finding the best hospital, and asking about treatment options. The book offers a useful glossary of bladder cancer terms written in easy-to-understand language, tells patients how to find clinical trials for evaluating new bladder-cancer treatments, and provides resources for patient-advocacy organizations, support groups, cancer-survivorship groups, and health and medical information databases.

With proper medical management, most cases of bladder cancer are highly treatable. This book can help patients take better control of their care and boost their chances for successful outcomes.