Some workers have a higher risk of getting bladder cancer because of carcinogens in the workplace, such as:

 

Being infected with certain parasites may increase the risk of bladder cancer. These parasites are common in tropical areas but not in the United States.

 

Cyclophosphamide or arsenic drugs that are used to treat cancer and other conditions raise the risk of bladder cancer.

 

Caucasians get bladder cancer twice as often as African Americans and Hispanics; the lowest rates of bladder cancer are among Asians.

 

Men are 2 to 3 times more likely than women to get bladder cancer.

 

People with family members who have bladder cancer are more likely to get bladder cancer and researchers are studying changes in certain genes that may increase the risk of bladder cancer.

 

People who have had bladder cancer have an increased chance of getting the disease again.

 

Other risk factors to take into consideration include chlorine and saccharin. Chlorine is added to water to make it safe to drink by killing deadly bacteria. However, chlorine by-products sometimes can form in chlorinated water. Researchers have been studying chlorine by-products for more than 25 years and although there is no proof that chlorinated water causes bladder cancer, researchers are continuing to study chlorine by-products. Some studies have found that saccharin, an artificial sweetener, causes bladder cancer in animals. However, research does not show that saccharin causes cancer in people.