USEFULNESS OF CA 125 AS A PREOPERATIVE PROGNOSTIC MARKER FOR TRANSITIONAL CELL CARCINOMA OF THE BLADDER

Blood-Based Biomarkers as Prognostic Factors of Recurrent Disease after Radical Cystectomy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Survival outcomes after radical cystectomy (RC) for bladder cancer (BCa) have not improved in recent decades; nevertheless, RC remains the standard treatment for patients with localized muscle-invasive BCa. Identification of the patients most likely to benefit from RC only versus a combination with systemic therapy versus systemic therapy first/only and bladder-sparing is needed. This systematic review and meta-analysis pools the data from published studies on blood-based biomarkers to help prognosticate disease recurrence after RC. A literature search on PubMed and Scopus was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) statement. Articles published before November 2022 were screened for eligibility. A meta-analysis was performed on studies investigating the association of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), the only biomarker with sufficient data, with recurrence-free survival. The systematic review identified 33 studies, and 7 articles were included in the meta-analysis. Our results demonstrated a statistically significant correlation between elevated NLR and an increased risk of disease recurrence (HR 1.26; 95% CI 1.09, 1.45; p = 0.002) after RC. The systematic review identified various other inflammatory biomarkers, such as interleukin-6 or the albumin-to-globulin ratio, which have been reported to have a prognostic impact on recurrence after RC. Besides that, the nutritional status, factors of angiogenesis and circulating tumor cells, and DNA seem to be promising tools for the prognostication of recurrence after RC. Due to the high heterogeneity between the studies and the different cut-off values of biomarkers, prospective and validation trials with larger sample sizes and standardized cut-off values should be conducted to strengthen the approach in using biomarkers as a tool for risk stratification in clinical decision-making for patients with localized muscle-invasive BCa.

CA125 for the Diagnosis of Advanced Urothelial Carcinoma of the Bladder: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND

Urothelial carcinoma of the bladder (UCB) is the second most common genitourinary cancer. This study aims to assess the diagnostic accuracy of CA125 in advanced UCB.

METHODS

We searched prevalent studies in PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Scopus, Embase, the Web of Science China National Knowledge Infrastructure database, and Wanfang data before October 2022. Pooled sensitivity, specificity, and summary receiver operating characteristics were used to assess the diagnostic value of CA125.

RESULTS

One thousand six hundred forty-one patients from 14 studies were analyzed. UCB stage T3-4N1 was defined as advanced UCB in ten studies; T2-4 was used in three studies; and N1M1 in one study. Patients' age was between 21 to 92, and 21% to 48.6% of patients were female. The pooled sensitivity was 0.695 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.426-0.875). The pooled specificity was 0.846 (95% CI: 0.713-0.924). The diagnostic odds ratio was 8.138 (95% CI: 4.559-14.526). The AUC was 0.797.

CONCLUSION

CA125 may provide significant diagnostic accuracy in identifying muscle-invasive, lymph node-involved, and distant metastatic tumors in patients with urothelial carcinoma of the bladder. Limited studies have been conducted on the prognostic role of CA125. More studies are needed for a meta-analysis on the prognostic role of CA125 in UCB.

Association between precystectomy epithelial tumor marker response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and oncological outcomes in urothelial bladder cancer

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES

We previously reported that elevated precystectomy serum levels of epithelial tumor markers predict worse oncological outcome in patients with invasive bladder cancer (BC). Herein, we evaluated the effect of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) on elevated tumor marker levels and their association with oncological outcomes.

METHODS

Under IRB approval, serum levels of Carbohydrate Antigen 125 (CA-125), Carbohydrate Antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) and Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA) were prospectively measured in 480 patients with invasive BC from August 2011 through December 2016. In the subgroup undergoing NAC, markers were measured prior to the first and after the last cycle of chemotherapy (prior to cystectomy).

RESULTS

Three hundred and thirty-seven patients were eligible for the study, with a median age was 71 years (range 34-93) and 81% (272) male. Elevated precystectomy level of any tumor markers (31% of patients) was independently associated with worse recurrence-free survival (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.81; P < 0.001) and overall survival (HR = 3.97; P < 0.001). One hundred and twenty-five (37%) patients underwent NAC, of whom 59 had a complete tumor marker profile and 30 (51%) had an elevated pre-NAC tumor marker. Following completion of chemotherapy, 10/30 (33%) patients normalized their tumor markers, while 20/30 (67%) had one or more persistently elevated markers. There was no difference in clinical or pathological stage between groups (P = 0.54 and P = 0.09, respectively). Further analysis showed a significantly lower rate and longer median time to recurrence/progression in the responder group (50% in responders vs. 90% in nonresponders at a median time of 22 vs. 4.8 months, respectively; P = 0.015). There was also significant difference in mortality rates and median overall survival between the study groups (30% in responders vs. 70% in nonresponders at a median time of 27.3 vs. 11.6 months respectively; P = 0.037). Two of the three patients that died in the normalized tumor marker group had tumor marker relapse at recurrence prior to their death.

CONCLUSIONS

To our knowledge, this is the first study showing tumor marker response to NAC. Patients with persistently elevated markers following NAC have a very poor prognosis following cystectomy, which may help identifying chemotherapy-resistant tumors. A larger, controlled study with longer follow up is needed to determine their role in predicting survival.

Aberrant glycosylation as biomarker for cancer: focus on CD43

Glycosylation is a posttranslational modification of proteins playing a major role in cell signalling, immune recognition, and cell-cell interaction because of their glycan branches conferring structure variability and binding specificity to lectin ligands. Aberrant expression of glycan structures as well as occurrence of truncated structures, precursors, or novel structures of glycan may affect ligand-receptor interactions and thus interfere with regulation of cell adhesion, migration, and proliferation. Indeed, aberrant glycosylation represents a hallmark of cancer, reflecting cancer-specific changes in glycan biosynthesis pathways such as the altered expression of glycosyltransferases and glycosidases. Most studies have been carried out to identify changes in serum glycan structures. In most cancers, fucosylation and sialylation are significantly modified. Thus, aberrations in glycan structures can be used as targets to improve existing serum cancer biomarkers. The ability to distinguish differences in the glycosylation of proteins between cancer and control patients emphasizes glycobiology as a promising field for potential biomarker identification. In this review, we discuss the aberrant protein glycosylation associated with human cancer and the identification of protein glycoforms as cancer biomarkers. In particular, we will focus on the aberrant CD43 glycosylation as cancer biomarker and the potential to exploit the UN1 monoclonal antibody (UN1 mAb) to identify aberrant CD43 glycoforms.

Cutaneous metastases from internal malignancies: a clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical review

Skin metastases occur in 0.6%-10.4% of all patients with cancer and represent 2% of all skin tumors. Skin metastases from visceral malignancies are important for dermatologists and dermatopathologists because of their variable clinical appearance and presentation, frequent delay and failure in their diagnosis, relative proportion of different internal malignancies metastasizing to the skin, and impact on morbidity, prognosis, and treatment. Another factor to take into account is that cutaneous metastasis may be the first sign of clinically silent visceral cancer. The relative frequencies of metastatic skin disease tend to correlate with the frequency of the different types of primary cancer in each sex. Thus, women with skin metastases have the following distribution in decreasing order of frequency of primary malignancies: breast, ovary, oral cavity, lung, and large intestine. In men, the distribution is as follows: lung, large intestine, oral cavity, kidney, breast, esophagus, pancreas, stomach, and liver. A wide morphologic spectrum of clinical appearances has been described in cutaneous metastases. This variable clinical morphology included nodules, papules, plaques, tumors, and ulcers. From a histopathologic point of view, there are 4 main morphologic patterns of cutaneous metastases involving the dermis, namely, nodular, infiltrative, diffuse, and intravascular. Generally, cutaneous metastases herald a poor prognosis. The average survival time of patients with skin metastases is a few months. In this article, we review the clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical characteristics of cutaneous metastases from internal malignancies, classify the most common cutaneous metastases, and identify studies that may assist in diagnosing the origin of a cutaneous metastasis.

Prognostic value of CA 125 in transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder

Recent studies have reported that serum cancer antigen (CA) 125 levels may be associated with pathological and survival outcomes in patients with bladder cancer to an extent that may support further investigation of clinical utility as a prognostic biomarker. The limitations of conventional bladder cancer staging prompted our institution to evaluate the association of CA 125 with pathological stage and tumor recurrence after radical cystectomy. Conventionally utilized for the management of ovarian cancer, the ability to detect CA 125 in transitional cell carcinoma tissue and urine of patients with transitional cell carcinoma raises the possibility that bladder cancer may be another indication for such testing. This article evaluates the current literature supporting the role of CA 125 as a biomarker with potential applications in patients with transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder undergoing radical cystectomy and urinary diversion. This article demonstrates that preoperative serum CA 125 levels may serve as a useful predictor of pathological outcomes above grade and stage in patients undergoing cystectomy for urothelial carcinoma of the bladder. The findings also show the potential use of preoperative CA 125 levels to predict unresectable tumors and clarify which candidates should receive neoadjuvant therapy.

Alterations in glycosylation as biomarkers for cancer detection

Glycoconjugates constitute a major class of biomolecules which include glycoproteins, glycosphingolipids and proteoglycans. Glycans are involved in several physiological and pathological conditions, such as host-pathogen interactions, cell differentiation, migration, tumour invasion and metastisation, cell trafficking and signalling. Cancer is associated with glycosylation alterations in glycoproteins and glycolipids. This review describes various aspects of protein glycosylation with the focus on alterations associated with human cancer. The application of these glycosylation modifications as biomarkers for cancer detection in tumour tissues and serological assays is summarised.

Clinical use of serum CA-125 levels in patients undergoing radical cystectomy for transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder

PURPOSE

It has recently been reported that serum CA-125 levels may serve as a prognostic indicator of extravesical disease in patients with bladder cancer. This study evaluated the role of CA-125 as a prognostic marker in patients with transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder undergoing radical cystectomy and urinary diversion.

METHODS

Ninety-two consecutive patients underwent planned radical cystectomy and urinary diversion with curative intent (2005-2006). Serum CA-125 levels were obtained in all patients and correlations were made to clinical and operative findings and pathological outcomes. Outcomes were evaluated with regard to normal vs. abnormal CA-125 values and with regard to absolute values of CA-125 levels. Results were also stratified by short-term recurrence rates.

RESULTS

Mean CA-125 values varied significantly by pathological stage and by resectability. No patient (0/56) with organ-confined disease (<or= pT2N0) had an abnormal CA-125, and only 1 patient (1/75 = 1.3%) with <or= pT3N0 disease had an abnormal value. Conversely, 35% of patients with regionally-advanced disease (pT4 or N+) had an elevated CA-125, and all patients with unresectable disease (5/5) had an elevated value. In addition, patients with abnormal values of CA-125 (i.e., <35 U/ml) had a significantly higher upstaging rate compared to non-upstaged patients (18.8% vs. 3.5%, respectively; P = 0.0233). As well, patients with CA-125 levels <15 U/ml had a significantly higher upstaging rate compared with non-upstaged patients (53.1% vs. 15.8%, respectively; P = 0.0005). At a mean follow-up of 15 months (median = 14 months), patients with T2/T3N0 disease who recurred had a higher mean value than patients with pT2/T3 disease who did not recur (20.1 vs. 10.8 U/ml).

CONCLUSIONS

Serum CA-125 levels may serve as a useful predictor of pathological outcomes in patients undergoing cystectomy for urothelial carcinoma of the bladder. Further studies will be carried out to determine the predictability of CA-125 on long-term recurrence and survival rates, and to evaluate the utility of CA-125 as a marker for disease response in patients with recurrent or advanced disease undergoing systemic therapy.

Herpetiform cutaneous metastases from transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder: immunohistochemical analysis

The case of an 83-year-old woman with an uncommon presentation of cutaneous metastases from muscle-invasive transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder is reported. The band-like eruption of the metastatic lesion can often be misdiagnosed and treated initially as herpes zoster. A detailed immunohistochemical analysis is also described to differentiate metastatic lesions from other sources.

Prediction of Extravesical Disease by Preoperative Serum Markers in Patients With Clinically Organ Confined Invasive Bladder Cancer

PURPOSE

We assessed the value of preoperative levels of CEA, CA-125 or CA 19-9 in patients with clinically organ confined bladder cancer to predict pathological extravesical and/or node positive disease.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Serum levels of CEA, CA-125 and CA 19-9 were measured prospectively in all patients scheduled for cystectomy for clinically organ confined bladder cancer between September 1999 and May 2004. Biomarker expression was compared between patients with pathologically organ confined disease (pT2 or less, pN0) and patients with extravesical disease (greater than pT2, or pN1 or greater), and between patients with pathologically node negative (any pT, pN0) and node positive disease (any pT, pN1 or greater).

RESULTS

Of the 91 patients enrolled, 46 had (51%) pathologically organ confined tumors, 45 (49%) had extravesical disease and 17 (19%) had positive lymph nodes. Preoperative serum levels of all markers were significantly higher in cases of extravesical disease than in organ confined disease. On multivariate analysis CEA with an odds ratio of 8.6 (95% CI 1.51-48.6) and CA-125 with an OR of 29.5 (95% CI 3.6-242.6) proved independent predictors of extravesical disease. CA-125 and CA 19-9 levels were significantly higher in patients with node positive disease than in those with node negative disease. On multivariate analysis CA-125 with an OR of 22.2 (95% CI 3.8-129) and CA 19-9 with an OR of 5.2 (95% CI 1.09-24.76) proved independent predictors of node positive disease.

CONCLUSIONS

Increase in serum tumor markers before cystectomy in patients with clinically organ confined muscle invasive bladder cancer is a strong indicator of the presence of extravesical and node positive disease.