Bladder cancer is the sixth most prevalent cancer among men in the U.S and ninth overall. Until now, there had not been much advancement in treatment.
It's been about 40 years since any real advancement has been made in the world of bladder cancer.
That all changed though with INLEXZO, a small device that looks like a pretzel and is inserted into a person's bladder where it releases chemotherapy.
Dr. Steve Overholzer with Minnesota Urology calls it a game-changer.
"We needed something like this and then it's delivered, which is great," explains Overholzer.
He says before this, chemo was delivered in different ways.
"The novel way that this product allows contact time with the bladder, and the chemotherapy agent has really changed the outcome," Overholzer adds.
And the outcomes, he says, are exciting.
"You know, you're talking about recurrence rates that can be as high as 50/50, a coin flip in terms of this stuff coming back," Overholzer adds. "INLEXZO can reduce the recurrence risk by 80%, 75%."
He says that new INLEXZO will be on display at a mobile learning lab coming up this week in Brooklyn Park.
"It looks very similar to an intrauterine device, it's shaped slightly differently, but the concept is the same," Overholzer explains. "You're putting it in a hollow organ, and you're going to leave it there for a certain amount of time. Aand then take it out."
