(HealthDay News) -- While the exact cause of bladder cancer is unknown, certain habits and traits can raise a person's risk of contracting it.
Here are common risk factors for bladder cancer, courtesy of the American Cancer Society:
- Smokers get bladder cancer about twice as often as those who don't light up.
- People who work with certain chemicals -- including those used to produce dyes, printing inks, and paints -- may be at higher risk.
- Whites are twice as likely to contract bladder cancer as blacks or Hispanics. The risk of bladder cancer also rises with age.
- Chronic bladder illnesses, including kidney stones and bladder infections.
- Personal or family history of bladder cancer.
- Birth defects of the bladder.
