Doctors share bladder cancer warning signs after Deion Sanders reveals diagnosis and recovery

After Hall of Fame athlete Deion Sanders' announcement that he battled bladder cancer, doctors are sharing warning signs to monitor. Sanders, who is currently head football coach at the University of Colorado Boulder, spoke about his medical struggles during a Monday press conference held at Folsom Field in Boulder. The former NFL and MLB star, 57, appeared alongside his care team and representatives from University of Colorado Health (UC Health) and University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus (CU Anschutz). Sanders was diagnosed with "very high-risk, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer," but is now cancer-free, according to a statement from his oncologist. It was very high-grade and invading through the bladder wall," said Dr. Janet Kukreja, urological oncology director at CU Anshutz. "I am pleased to report that the results from the surgery are that he is cured from the cancer." Head coach Deion Sanders of the University of Colorado speaks about his journey beating bladder cancer during a press conference in the Touchdown Club at Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado, on July 28, 2025. The oncologist noted that Sanders' type of cancer has a very high rate of recurrence and progression. Treating the disease within the bladder would require a long series of treatments over a three-year period, and there would still be a 50% chance of the cancer coming back. The cancer could also have spread to the muscle, the doctor said, which happens in about half of cases. "Only about 10% of people live five years, even with our current medical treatment, if it metastasizes," she said. Together with his care team, Sanders made the decision to have a bladder removal, in which surgeons performed a "full robot-assisted laparoscopic bladder removal" and created a new bladder. "It is a new way of life.