Bladder cancer–glycosylation insights

Bladder cancer is a common urologic cancer in Europe, with the highest recurrence rate of any malignancy. Early diagnosis and correct staging of the disease is critical, not only for planning treatment but also for selecting follow-up schedules, due to the high risk of recurrence. Since few biomolecules have reached the clinical practice, an unmet clinical need for biomarkers persists. Correlations between specific glycan antigens and bladder cancer progression stages, as well as diagnostic approaches based on glycan analysis have been suggested worldwide. This chapter highlights the relevance and key aspects of the glycosylation changes associated with bladder cancer. Moreover, recent studies suggest that glycan-based markers would have widespread applicability in managing bladder cancer treatment and are promising potential targets for novel therapies.