Oncology & Hematology Coding Alert

Reader Questions:

Resolve the Right Way to Report This Tumor Resection

Question: What are the correct surgical and diagnosis codes to report for the following case? Also, should this case be reported to Medicare or Cigna?

Postop diagnosis: Malignant neoplasm of internal urethral orifice

Procedures: Cystourethroscopy, resection of small bladder neck tumor, 1.9 cm per op report.

This patient is 67 years old and has a Medicare policy. He is still working and has employer coverage with Cigna.

AAPC Forum Participant

Answer: First, for the diagnosis, you’ll use C67.5 (Malignant neoplasm of bladder neck) to report the bladder cancer.

For the surgery code, since this patient had a 1.9 cm mass, you should report 52234 (Cystourethroscopy, with fulguration (including cryosurgery or laser surgery) and/or resection of; SMALL bladder tumor(s) (0.5 up to 2.0 cm)), as the code is based on bladder tumor size.

In this case, you should file the claim with Cigna, because working patients with insurance coverage from their employer are Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) patients.