Bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer outcomes in patients without radical cystectomy

Recent advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer: Evidence update of surgical concept, risk stratification, and BCG-treated disease

In the management of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), disease progression and long-term control are determined by the intensity of delivered treatment and surveillance and the cancer cells' biological nature. This requires risk stratification-based postoperative management, such as intravesical instillation of chemotherapy drugs, Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), and radical cystectomy. Advancements in mechanical engineering, molecular biology, and surgical skills have evolved the clinical management of NMIBC. In this review, we describe the updated evidence and perspectives regarding the following aspects: (1) advancements in surgical concepts, techniques, and devices for transurethral resection of the bladder tumor; (2) advancements in risk stratification tools for NMIBC; and (3) advancements in treatment strategies for BCG-treated NMIBC. Repeat transurethral resection, en-bloc transurethral resection, and enhanced tumor visualization, including photodynamic diagnosis and narrow-band imaging, help reduce residual cancer cells, provide accurate diagnosis and staging, and sensitive detection, which are the first essential steps for cancer cure. Risk stratification should always be updated and improved because the treatment strategy changes over time. The BCG-treated disease concept has recently diversified to include BCG failure, resistance, refractory, unresponsiveness, exposure, and intolerance. A BCG-unresponsive disease is an extremely aggressive subset unlikely to respond to a rechallenge with BCG. Numerous ongoing clinical trials aim to develop a future bladder-sparing approach for very high-risk BCG-naïve NMIBC and BCG-unresponsive NMIBC. The key to improving the quality of patient care lies in the continuous efforts to overcome the clinical limitations of bedside management.

Real-world treatment patterns and oncological outcomes in early relapse and refractory disease after bacillus Calmette-Guérin failure in non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer

OBJECTIVE

To assess real-world oncological outcomes between the radical cystectomy (RC) group and non-RC group for early relapse and refractory disease.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed 953 patients with recurrent non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) who received bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) at 31 affiliated hospitals from 2000 to 2019. Patients with missing data on the timing of failure were excluded and 871 patients remained eligible, of whom 447, 357, and 67 were classified as early relapse/refractory disease, intermediate/late relapse disease, and intolerant disease, respectively. For early relapse/refractory disease, patients were divided into two salvage treatment groups: RC and non-RC. The clinicopathological variables of each group were examined using Kaplan-Meier plots and proportional Cox hazard ratios with matched score analyses to compare oncological outcomes between the two groups.

RESULTS

Significantly worse progression-free survival and cancer-specific survival (CSS) were confirmed in the early relapse/refractory disease group compared to the intermediate/late relapse group. Of the 88 salvage patients in the RC group with early relapse/refractory disease, ≤pT1 was observed in 47, pT2 in 11, and ≥pT3 in 28 (two patients with unknown pT category). In early relapse/refractory disease, the RC group showed significantly high-risk tumor compared to the non-RC group. However, no significant difference was observed in CSS after matched score analyses (p = 0.45) between the RC and non-RC groups.

CONCLUSIONS

This study found that the RC group showed no significant superiority compared to the non-RC group in CSS for early relapse/refractory disease in terms of first salvage therapy.

Prognostication in Japanese patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer undergoing early radical cystectomy

OBJECTIVES

The US Food and Drug Administration recently defined the clinical term "Bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer" as a disease state resistant to adequate Bacillus Calmette-Guérin therapy. There is a significant lack of prognostication for this disease even in patients who have undergone early radical cystectomy. This study aimed to identify the clinical outcomes and prognostic factors in Japanese patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer who underwent early radical cystectomy.

METHODS

Data from a large-scale multicenter retrospective study included 2879 patients with highest-risk or high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer who received intravesical Bacillus Calmette-Guérin induction therapy between January 2000 and December 2019. A total of 141 patients (4.3%) met the criteria for Bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive disease, of whom 47 (33.3%) underwent early radical cystectomy. Prognostic factors for three clinical endpoints, namely, unresectable lesion-free survival, cancer-specific survival, and overall survival, were identified.

RESULTS

The highest-risk status at induction Bacillus Calmette-Guérin was associated with short unresectable lesion-free survival (hazard ratio 7.85; P < 0.05), cancer-specific survival (hazard ratio 12.24; P < 0.05), and overall survival (hazard ratio 9.25; P < 0.01). Moreover, extravesical tumors (pathological T3 or T4) on the radical cystectomy specimens were associated with poor prognosis and were found at a higher rate in patients with the highest-risk status at induction Bacillus Calmette-Guérin than in those with high-risk status (35.7% vs 21.2%).

CONCLUSIONS

The highest-risk status among the pre-Bacillus Calmette-Guérin factors was associated with upstaging to extravesical tumors and poor prognosis despite early radical cystectomy procedures. Appropriate decision-making and the correct timing of radical cystectomy are vital to avoid treatment delays and improve outcomes.