The classic presenting symptom to the doctor is blood in the urine (haematuria) or occasionally symptoms of bladder discomfort. In particular, haematuria is a symptom that is noticed very early by patients and usually brings them soon to the doctor; at this time, the disease is usually in an 'early stage'.
However, sometimes, the symptoms referable to the baldder may not occur and then the patient may not present to the doctor until he/ she develops obstructed ureters (due to the tumours blocking the junction where the ureters lead into the bladder) or even unitl the disease has spread to other organs e.g. liver, lungs or bones.
