Bladder Cancer Claims Ogura’s Life Doctors Warn of Urgency

If a complete removal is done, the five-year survival rate exceeds 70%.

Tomoaki Ogura (aged 77) closed his life after an eight-year battle with bladder cancer. His journey highlights the importance of early cancer detection, the difficulty in choosing treatment options, and the harsh reality of disease progression.

Ogura explained before his passing that the reason he hesitated to decide on a full bladder removal was the fear of losing male function, which delayed his decision to undergo treatment.

“Ogura’s words reflect the internal struggle faced by many bladder cancer patients. However, the reality is that delayed treatment can shorten one’s life,” 

Said Dr. Tetsuya Kubota, director of Kubota Clinic Matsudo Goka, his voice lowering.

“Bladder cancer is mainly divided into non-invasive and invasive types. If it’s non-invasive, there’s a high chance that the bladder can be preserved with endoscopic treatment, and the five-year survival rate is over 90%. However, for invasive bladder cancer, where the cancer reaches the muscle layer, full bladder removal is often necessary.

Even in invasive bladder cancer, if bladder removal is done at the right time, the five-year survival rate can remain at 70-80%. But if the surgery is delayed and metastasis is found, the survival rate significantly drops.

To put it in numbers, if lymph nodes are involved, the five-year survival rate drops to about 35%. If distant metastasis is present, it falls below 15%. That’s why, when diagnosed with invasive bladder cancer, an early treatment decision is crucial,” Dr. Kubota explained.

In invasive bladder cancer, the speed of treatment decisions directly affects survival rates. However, many male patients, after being informed of the need for bladder removal, struggle with the idea of “loss of sexual function.” Dr. Kubota emphasized:

“The possibility of losing sexual function is a significant psychological burden for men. While I understand this, it’s important to consider the far more serious consequences of delaying treatment. If the cancer progresses and metastasis occurs, aggressive chemotherapy will be required, weakening both physical strength and immunity. It will greatly impact overall life, not just sexual life, but everyday life itself will be severely restricted.”

There was a possibility of remission.

When choosing treatment options, it may not be easy for patients to express their concerns about losing male function to their doctors. However, by consulting without hesitation, patients can actually come to a better understanding. This is a crucial step.

“As doctors, we also want to protect the patient’s quality of life (QOL). Advances in medical technology in recent years have contributed to improving QOL after treatment. Nerve-sparing surgeries to preserve sexual function and post-surgery rehabilitation programs are continuing to evolve,” said Dr. Kubota.

Ogura took a two-year detour by trying alternative therapies. Dr. Kubota continued, “If he had undergone a full bladder removal early on, there was a possibility that he could have achieved remission.”

“If he had chosen full removal at the time of the initial diagnosis, remission was possible. However, this doesn’t mean Ogura’s choice was wrong. His decision to publicly share his fight against the disease taught us a great deal as doctors. While there were certainly risks due to the delay in treatment, Ogura made it clear. His determination to continue working and enjoy life despite cancer commands our deepest respect.”

How do we view Ogura’s choice? What can we learn from it? As those left behind, we must respond to the resolve he showed in raising these issues, risking his life as a television professional.