Staging describes how far urothelial carcinoma has grown and whether it has spread. The way urothelial carcinoma is staged depends on where in the urinary tract the cancer started.
Most urothelial carcinomas start in the bladder, so the detailed stage descriptions here focus on bladder cancer. Upper tract urothelial carcinoma, which starts in the renal pelvis or ureter, uses a different location-specific staging system.
Stage helps your healthcare team understand how serious your cancer is and choose treatments that are most likely to help.
Staging bladder urothelial carcinoma
Bladder cancer staging looks at the tumor, nearby lymph nodes and whether the cancer has spread to other parts of your body. These are described with the letters T, N and M. T describes how deeply the tumor has grown into or through the bladder wall. N describes whether cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes. M describes whether cancer has spread to distant parts of your body.
Another important consideration in bladder urothelial carcinoma is whether the cancer is non-muscle invasive or muscle invasive. Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer has not grown into the bladder muscle. Muscle-invasive bladder cancer has grown into the muscle layer and has a greater risk of spreading.
Stage 0
Stage 0 bladder cancer is limited to the innermost lining of the bladder. It has not grown into the tissue beneath the lining or the bladder muscle. Stage 0 includes noninvasive papillary cancer and carcinoma in situ (CIS). CIS is a flat, high-grade cancer in the bladder lining.
Stage 1
Stage 1 bladder cancer has grown through the bladder lining into the connective tissue underneath, called the lamina propria. It has not reached the bladder muscle. Cancer at this stage is still considered non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.
Stage 2
Stage 2 bladder cancer has grown into the muscle layer of the bladder wall. The cancer has not spread to nearby lymph nodes or distant parts of the body. Cancer at this stage is muscle-invasive bladder cancer.
Stage 3
Stage 3 bladder cancer may have grown through the bladder muscle into nearby tissues or organs. Or it may have spread to certain nearby lymph nodes.
Stage 4
Stage 4 bladder cancer is advanced cancer. It may have grown into the wall of the pelvis or abdomen, spread to lymph nodes beyond the pelvis, or spread to distant organs. Common distant sites include the bones, lungs and liver.
Stages of upper tract urothelial carcinoma
Upper tract urothelial carcinoma is staged based on how deeply the tumor has grown into the renal pelvis or ureter and whether it has spread to lymph nodes or other parts of the body. UTUC uses its own location-specific TNM staging system.
Urothelial carcinoma of the urethra also uses location-specific staging that considers how far the tumor has grown or spread.
How fast does urothelial carcinoma grow or spread?
How quickly urothelial carcinoma grows or spreads varies. Low-grade bladder cancers tend to grow more slowly and are less likely to invade the bladder muscle. High-grade cancers are more likely to grow into the muscle and spread. Stage and grade describe different things. Stage describes where the cancer is in the body, while grade describes how the cancer cells look and gives clues about how they may behave.
Oct. 02, 2026