Bacillus Calmette-Guerin intravesical therapy is the standard treatment of superficial bladder tumors at high risk of recurrence and progression to muscle-invasion disease. To date, there is no well established predictive factor of response to Bacillus Calmette-Guerin intravesical therapy. The prognostic value of p53 overexpression in bladder tumors is controversial. Most investigators have found no correlation between p53 status assessed before Bacillus Calmette-Guerin intravesical therapy and patient outcome. On the other hand, it is acknowledged that the persistence of p53 overexpression after Bacillus Calmette-Guerin intravesical therapy is predictive of progression in patients treated for carcinoma in situ. Since conflicting data have been reported, further evaluation of the impact of p53 overexpression in patients treated with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin intravesical therapy for bladder carcinoma is required.