Conditions We Treat

According to the American Cancer Society, more than 70,000 Americans are diagnosed with bladder cancer each year. Bladder cancer is more common among men than women. Cigarette smoking is a contributing factor of more than 50 percent of bladder cancer cases.

It is estimated that approximately 30,000 Americans are diagnosed with kidney cancer each year. The disease is slightly more common in men than women and is usually diagnosed in individuals between the ages of 50 and 70. If kidney cancer is detected early, the survival rate ranges from 79 to 100 percent.

According to the American Cancer Society, 7,600 cases of testicular cancer are diagnosed each year. Approximately 400 men die of the disease each year. It is most common in men between the ages of 18 and 32. Because of advanced treatment options and early detection, testicular cancer is successfully treated in more than 95 percent of cases.

There are at least five million adult men in the United States who have low testosterone. Just five percent of these men are actually receiving treatment for this condition. The Center for Men's Health at TUCC provides technologically advanced treatment options for men suffering from low testosterone.

A vasectomy is a relatively short office procedure, lasting approximately 30 minutes, performed to cut and close off the tubes (vas deferens) that deliver sperm from the testes and serve as a permanent form of birth control. TUCC physicians perform both traditional and no-scalpel vasectomies.

Vasectomy reversals utilize an operating microscope and ultrafine sutures to reattach the inside and outside of the vas deferens. Jesse Mills, M.D., specializes in performing vasectomy reversal procedures at TUCC. He performs more than 150 microsurgical procedures year and is fellowship trained in microsurgery and male reproductive medicine. Vasectomy reversals are performed in an outpatient setting at TUCC, lasting less than two hours.

Female urology is a urology subspecialty concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of common female urologic conditions. These conditions include urinary incontinence, bladder prolapse (cystocele), voiding dysfunction, recurrent urinary tract infection, urethral syndrome and interstitial cystitis.

Urinary incontinence can occur in four forms, stress incontinence, urge incontinence, mixed urinary incontinence or overflow incontinence. Patients suffering from stress incontinence experience urine leakage caused by an increase in abdominal pressure.

Kidney stones are rock like masses within the urinary tract formed by the crystallization of various elements excreted in the urine. Common types of kidney stones are composed of calcium oxalate, calcium phosphate, uric acid or magnesium ammonium phosphate. The incidence of kidney and ureteral stones increases during summer months.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is caused by changing hormonal levels that increase the size of the prostate. The prostate may grow by cells multiplying around the urethra and squeezing it or by cells growing into the urethra and lower bladder. BPH is the most common disorder of the prostate.

Erectile dysfunction is defined as the inability to achieve or maintain an erection. Chronic erectile dysfunction affects approximately 5 percent of men in their 40s and 15-25 percent of men over the age of 65. Transient erectile dysfunction can affect up to 50 percent of men between the ages of 40 and 70.

Patients suffering from prostatitis experience an inflammation of the prostate gland. There are three forms of prostatitis, acute bacterial prostatitis, chronic bacterial prostatitis and non-bacterial prostatitis.

Interstitial cystitis is a chronic bladder condition caused by damage to the protective lining of the bladder. Patients may experience symptoms of urinary frequency, urinary urgency or pain in the areas between the navel and the inside of the thighs that can be mild or severe and occasional or constant.

It is estimated that as many as 25 million Americans suffer from bladder control problems. Voiding dysfunction is a condition in which the bladder does not function properly.

Damage to the nervous system may sometimes cause patients to lose normal bladder function, a condition known as neurogenic bladder. Patients suffering from this condition may experience an underactive bladder unable to contract or empty completely or an overactive bladder that contracts too quickly and frequently.

Hematuria is a condition in which blood appears in a patient's urine. The blood may be gross (visible to the naked eye) or microscopic (only visible under a microscope). Hematuria can originate from any location along the urinary tract.

Urinary tract infections (UTI) occur when bacteria enter the urinary tract and urethra and multiply. These infections typically develop in the lower urinary tract before progressing to the upper urinary tract if they remain untreated.