Practice Patterns Regarding Female Reproductive Organ-Sparing and Nerve-Sparing Radical Cystectomy Among Urologic Oncologists in the United States

Oncologic outcomes of pelvic organ-preserving radical cystectomy vs. Standard radical cystectomy: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Radical Cystectomy is indicated in muscle-invasive bladder cancer and select cases of nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer. Women often undergo additional reproductive organ removal, greatly impacting sexual function and quality of life. Pelvic organ-preserving radical cystectomy aims to mitigate these effects, but its oncologic outcomes are not well-defined. This presents a meta-analysis of available literature on oncological outcomes of pelvic organ-preserving radical cystectomy in women with muscle invasive disease.

METHODS

A systematic search across PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar was performed to identify studies comparing oncological outcomes between pelvic organ-preserving radical cystectomy and standard radical cystectomy in women with muscle-invasive bladder cancer or high-risk or recurrent nonmuscle invasive cancer. The search included English or Spanish studies, statistically comparing overall survival, cancer-specific survival, and recurrence-free survival. Statistical analysis used Review Manager, employing fixed or random-effects models based on heterogeneity.

KEY FINDINGS AND LIMITATIONS

Six retrospective studies met inclusion criteria, totaling 597 patients of which 303 received pelvic organ-preserving radical cystectomy and 294 received standard radical cystectomy. Overall Survival was not different between the 2 groups (HR 1.05 [0.77, 1.43]; P = 0.77). Cancer-Specific Survival also was found to be not different between the 2 groups (HR 1.27 [0.86, 1.87]; P = 0.22). Additionally, recurrence-free survival was not different between the 2 groups (HR 0.85 [0.41, 1.75]; P = 0.65. Four of the included studies exhibited a moderate risk of bias, with 1 study demonstrating low risk and the remaining study manifesting a serious risk of bias.

CONCLUSION

The comparison showed no significant differences in overall survival, cancer-specific survival, or recurrence-free survival rates.

Gynaecological organ involvement in females undergoing radical cystectomy: a multicentre study

OBJECTIVE

To report the incidence of malignancy in gynaecological organs removed during radical cystectomy (RC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A retrospective multicentre study of 1600 RCs at three high-volume institutions between January 2009 and March 2022 was performed. Pathological findings in gynaecological organs in female RC specimens were reviewed. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify predictors of malignant gynaecological organ involvement (GOI) at time of RC.

RESULTS

Overall, 302 females with a median (interquartile range) age of 68 (61-75) years underwent RC for clinical (c)Ta-T4 bladder cancer. In all, 56 patients (18.5%) received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Malignant GOI was seen in 20 patients (6.6%); the most common single sites of GOI were the uterus (five patients) and vaginal wall (four), followed by cervix (one), and ovaries (one). Nine patients had involvement of more than one gynaecological organ. No females had a primary gynaecological malignancy detected incidentally at RC. Patients with GOI were more likely to have cT3/T4 stage (P < 0.001), preoperative hydronephrosis (P = 0.004), lymphovascular invasion (P = 0.002), and squamous cell carcinoma (P = 0.005) than those without GOI. On multivariable analysis, cT4 stage was an independent predictor of malignant GOI (odds ratio 88.3, 95% confidence interval 10.1-1214; P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

To our knowledge, we present the largest multi-institutional study examining malignant GOI in females with bladder cancer undergoing RC. The rate of GOI at the time of RC is low and associated with higher clinical stage. In the absence of clinical or radiological evidence of sexual organ involvement, our results do not support their routine removal at the time of RC.

The sex gap in bladder cancer survival - a missing link in bladder cancer care?

The differences in bladder cancer outcomes between the sexes has again been highlighted. Uncommon among cancers, bladder cancer outcomes are notably worse for women than for men. Furthermore, bladder cancer is three to four times more common among men than among women. Factors that might explain these sex differences include understanding the importance of haematuria as a symptom of bladder cancer by both clinicians and patients, the resultant delays in diagnosis and referral of women with haematuria, and health-care access. Notably, these factors seem to have geographical variation and are not consistent across all health-care systems. Likewise, data relating to sex-specific treatment responses for patients with non-muscle-invasive or muscle-invasive bladder cancer are inconsistent. The influence of differences in the microbiome, bladder wall thickness and urine dwell times remain to be elucidated. The interplay of hormone signalling, gene expression, immunology and the tumour microenvironment remains complex but probably underpins the sexual dimorphism in disease incidence and stage and histology at presentation. The contribution of these biological phenomena to sex-specific outcome differences is probable, albeit potentially treatment-specific, and further understanding is required. Notwithstanding these aspects, we identify opportunities to harness biological differences to improve treatment outcomes, as well as areas of fundamental and translational research to pursue. At the level of policy and health-care delivery, improvements can be made across the domains of patient awareness, clinician education, referral pathways and guideline-based care. Together, we aim to highlight opportunities to close the sex gap in bladder cancer outcomes.