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Individuals dealing with both color blindness and bladder cancer might encounter a less promising outlook compared to those who have bladder cancer but possess typical sight, a study reveals.(Image credit: lielos/Getty Images)ShareShare by:
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Could the presence of color vision deficiency reduce your likelihood of surviving bladder cancer? This is the intriguing proposition that investigators have put forth, based on a limited investigation.
The study, appearing on Jan. 15 in the journal Nature Health, analyzed information from 135 individuals with concurrent bladder cancer and color blindness, and compared these individuals to 135 individuals affected solely by bladder cancer. The data was sourced from TriNetX, a global database of digital health records encompassing over 275 million individuals.
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The researchers proposed a likely justification for this noted variation: Color blindness could complicate the detection of blood within your urine — an initial symptom of the malignancy — potentially delaying identification.
“Bladder cancer is a serious condition. Diagnosis delays can negatively impact the prognosis,” Dr. Veeru Kasivisvanathan, a urological oncologist and surgeon affiliated with University College London, who had no involvement in the investigation, informed Live Science.
A possible correlation
Blood present in urine represents one of the foremost early manifestations of bladder cancer, in conjunction with frequent urination, discomfort or burning sensations upon urination, the sensation of needing to urinate even when the bladder is not full, and regular nighttime urination.
Should anyone observe blood in their urine, they ought to promptly seek medical consultation, stated Kasivisvanathan. However, as the study authors posited, the inability to readily differentiate between red and yellow could significantly impede the recognition of this initial warning signal.
Color blindness, alternatively termed color vision impairment, represents a relatively prevalent ailment, with a recent investigation indicating that roughly 1 in every 40 individuals across the globe manifest some degree of color vision impairment. (These statistics are likely approximations, given that routine color vision impairment screenings are uncommon.) The study suggests that color vision deficiency tends to be more frequent among males compared to females.
The outcomes from this recent study should be interpreted with significant reservation, as advised by Kasivisvanathan and Shang-ming Zhou, an e-health professor at the University of Plymouth without involvement in the work, in their communication with Live Science. In fact, the authors of the study also admitted that their research possesses noteworthy constraints.
As an illustration, the fact that color blindness frequently remains undiagnosed introduces the possibility that some individuals with the affliction were incorrectly incorporated into the cohort lacking color blindness during the analysis, thus potentially skewing the findings. Furthermore, the designation “color blindness” encompasses a spectrum of conditions characterized by varying red-perception capabilities. Zhou remarked that, in theory, protanopia (red-blindness) ought to confer a heightened risk compared to deuteranopia (green-blindness) within this context; however, the investigation lacks the capacity to differentiate between these subtypes.
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Moreover, the study encompassed a restricted sample size, thus diminishing the dependability of the outcomes and complicating the identification of additional elements capable of elucidating the variance in prognosis. Ultimately, from the available data, it is not viable to demonstrate definitively that color blindness resulted in a delayed illness detection; at present, this remains merely a supposition.
“The authors appropriately characterize this as hypothesis-generating research,” Zhou stated. He underscored that “Current data is inadequate to justify routine blood cancer screening for [patients with color vision deficiency], and the absolute risk increment remains uncertain.”
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In summation, supplementary investigations are requisite to ascertain whether color blindness heightens the mortality risk associated with bladder cancer and to ascertain strategies for improved protection of these patients, assuming such a correlation is confirmed. Nonetheless, Kasivisvanathan asserted that this represents “the correct [study] design for addressing such a query,” adding that while the research is inconclusive, it does stimulate intriguing avenues for exploration.
It is conceivable that patients exhibiting known bladder cancer risk factors — for instance, being a male above 50, tobacco use, anticoagulant use, or a history of radiotherapy — might derive benefit from awareness regarding the potential superimposed risk stemming from undiagnosed color blindness. Additionally, individuals with known color blindness and cancer risk factors could be urged to conduct urine self-examinations employing alternative methods, such as test strips, proposed Kasivisvanathan.
Zhou added that this investigation also prompts inquiries pertaining to other malignancies associated with blood presence in bodily fluids during their early phases, for example, oral cancers. The consensus among experts, however, is that further research is required at this juncture.
Disclaimer
This article is intended for general knowledge purposes only and should not be taken as a substitute for professional medical guidance.
Marianne GuenotLive Science Contributor
Marianne serves as an independent science reporter specializing in the spheres of well-being, space, and tech. She is particularly keen on elaborating on themes of corpulence, neurology, and contagious maladies, while concurrently reveling in the examination of science and tech enterprises. Marianne formerly held the roles of news editor at The Lancet and Nature Medicine, along with that of the U.K. science correspondent for Business Insider. Preceding her career as a writer, Marianne functioned as a scientist exploring the human body’s defense mechanisms against malaria parasites and intestinal microbes.
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