Do Younger Patients with Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer have Better Outcomes?

Prognostic factors and nomogram for the overall survival of bladder cancer bone metastasis: A SEER-based study

Bone metastasis has a poor prognosis in patients with bladder cancer (BC). This study aimed to construct a prognostic nomogram for predicting the overall survival of patients with bone-metastatic BC (BMBC). The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was used to recruit patients with BMBC between 2010 and 2018. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to screen for prognostic factors and construct a nomogram. Harrell concordance index, receiver operating characteristic curve, and calibration curve were used to verify the prognostic nomograms. All statistical analyses and chart formation were performed using SPSS 23.0 and R software 4.1.2. A total of 1361 patients diagnosed with BMBC were identified in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. Six independent prognostic factors, including marital status, histological type, T stage, other metastases, surgery, and chemotherapy, were identified and included in the nomogram construction. Among them, chemotherapy contributed the most to the prognosis in the nomogram. The concordance index of the nomogram was 0.745 and 0.753 in the training and validation groups, respectively, and all values of the area under the curve were >0.77. The calibration curves showed perfect consistency between the observed and predicted survival rates. The prognostic nomogram developed in this study is expected to become an accurate and individualized tool for predicting overall survival in patients with BMBC and providing guidance for appropriate treatment or care.

Approaches to Clinical Complete Response after Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer: Possibilities and Limitations

In the surgical oncology field, the change from a past radical surgery to an organ preserving surgery is a big trend. In muscle-invasive bladder cancer treatment, neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) followed by radical cystectomy (RC) is the standard of care for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) patients eligible for cisplatin. There is a growing interest in bladder preserving strategies after NAC because good oncologic outcome has been reported for pathologic complete response (pCR) patients after NAC, and many studies have continued to discuss whether bladder preservation treatment is possible for these patients. However, in actual clinical practice, decision-making should be determined according to clinical staging and there is a gap that cannot be ignored between clinical complete response (cCR) and pCR. Currently, there is a lack in a uniform approach to post-NAC restaging of MIBC and a standardized cCR definition. In this review, we clarify the gap between cCR and pCR at the current situation and focus on emerging strategies in bladder preservation in selected patients with MIBC who achieve cCR following NAC.

Diagnostic accuracy of cystoscopic biopsy for tumour grade in outpatients with urothelial carcinoma of the bladder and the risk factors of upgrading

Objective

To assess the concordance of tumour grade in specimens obtained from diagnostic cystoscopic biopsy and transurethral resection of bladder tumour (TURBT) and explore the risk factors of upgrading.

Methods

The medical records of 205 outpatients who underwent diagnostic cystoscopic biopsy before initial TURBT were retrospectively reviewed. Comparative analysis of the tumour grade of biopsy and operation specimens was performed. Tumour grade changing from low-grade to high-grade with or without variant histology was defined as upgrading. Logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the risk factors of upgrading.

Results

For the 205 patients, the concordance of tumour grade between specimens obtained from biopsy and operation was 0.639. The concordance for patients who were preoperatively diagnosed with low-grade and high-grade was 0.504 and 0.912, respectively. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that older age, tumour multifocality, high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and low lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) were significantly associated with upgrading (odds ratio ranging from 0.412 to 4.364). The area under the curve of the different multivariate models was improved from 0.752 to 0.821, and decision curve analysis demonstrated a high net benefit when NLR, LMR, and PLR were added.

Conclusion

Diagnostic cystoscopic biopsy may not accurately represent the true grade of primary bladder cancer, especially for outpatients with low-grade bladder cancer. Moreover, older age, tumour multifocality, high NLR, PLR, and low LMR are risk factors of upgrading, and systemic inflammatory markers improve the predictive ability.

PET/CT in Bladder Cancer: An Update

In the urinary tract, bladder cancer is the most common malignancy. It is a heterogenous cancer type with approximately 30% presenting as muscle invasive bladder cancer with a high risk of metastatic spread associated with risk of death from distant metastases. The other 70% of bladder cancer patients present with superficial tumors with tendency of recurrence but in general not life-threatening. Like in other malignancies, accurate and precise staging of bladder cancer is one of the mainstays at the time of diagnosis to select the optimal treatment for each patient. The detection of metastatic spread is of utmost importance for selection of treatment strategy. Hybrid imaging med with FDG PET/CT is widely used in the clinical management of a variety of malignancies. FDG PET/CT is increasingly used for primary staging of muscle invasive bladder cancer and for detection of recurrence after radical cystectomy. Few studies have used FDG PET/CT for response evaluation of neoadjuvant, induction chemotherapy or immunotherapy. Furthermore, small studies have tested non-FDG PET agents with little or no urinary excretions of the tracer. This review provides an update on PET/CT in bladder cancer.

Clinical behavior and survival outcome of urothelial bladder cancer in young adults

Background:

Bladder cancer (BC) is rare in young adults and therefore natural history of BC is still debatable. This study aimed to determine clinical behavior and prognosis of BC in patients <40 years.

Materials and Methods:

We reviewed patients (<40 years) managed with urothelial BC from 2003 to 2019. Patients with nonurothelial histology were excluded. Clinical behavior and prognosis such as recurrence, progression, and survival were assessed. The recurrence is defined as a newly diagnosed occurrence of BC at previous or new site(s). Cancer progression is defined as an increase in staging or grade.

Results:

Fifty-five patients inclusive of 45 males and 10 females with a median age of 30.0 (interquartile range [IQR] 25.0–33.0) years were included. The median follow-up was 3.5 (IQR: 1.5–7.0) years. Fifty-one (92.72%) patients were diagnosed with nonmuscle-invasive BC while four (7.27%) patients were diagnosed with muscle-invasive disease. Three out of four patients with muscle-invasive BC died of metastatic disease. According to stage and grade, there were 42 (76.36%) Ta, 9 (16.36%) T1 and 4 (7.27%) having T2 stage while 41 (74.54%) low grade and 14 (25.45%) were having high grade disease. Thirty-six (65.45%) patients remained stable, 13 (26.63%) patients progressed, and 6 (10.90%) patients regressed to lower stage and grade. Higher stage and grade (P = 0.0431) and tumor size >3 cm (P = 0.0454) were significant for recurrence, and higher stage and grade (P = 0.0012) and tumor size >3 cm (P = 0.0055) were associated with tumor progression.

Conclusion:

BC in younger adults is mostly low stage and low grade. We should be vigilant in patients with higher stage and grade as it is related with recurrence, progression, and metastatic disease.

Risk of bladder cancer death in patients younger than 50 with non-muscle-invasive and muscle-invasive bladder cancer

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES

Bladder cancer is primarily a disease of older age and little is known about the differences between patients diagnosed with bladder cancer at a younger versus older age. Our objectives were to compare bladder cancer specific survival in patients aged <50 versus those aged 50-70 at time of diagnosis.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The Swedish bladder cancer database provided data on patient demographics, clinical characteristics and treatments for this observational study. Cox proportional hazard regression models were adjusted for appropriate variables. All analyses were stratified by disease stage (non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer and muscle-invasive bladder cancer. Furthermore, we compared the frequency of lower urinary tract infections within 24 months prior to bladder cancer diagnosis by sex and age groups.

RESULTS

The study included 15,452 newly-diagnosed BC patients (1997-2014); 1,207 (8%) patients were <50 whilst 14,245 (92%) were aged 50-70. Patients aged <50 at diagnosis were at a decreased risk of bladder cancer death (HR = 0.82, 95%CI: 0.68-0.99) compared to those aged 50-70. When stratified by non-muscle-invasive and muscle-invasive bladder cancer, this association remained in non-muscle-invasive patients only (<50, HR = 0.43, 95% CI: 0.28-0.64). The frequency of lower urinary tract infection diagnoses did not differ between younger and older patients in either men or women.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients diagnosed with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer when aged <50 are at decreased risk of bladder cancer-specific death when compared to their older (50-70) counterparts. These observations raise relevant research questions about age-related differences in diagnostic procedures, clinical decision-making and, not least, potential differences in tumour biology.

Evaluating the impact of 18F-FDG-PET-CT on risk stratification and treatment adaptation for patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (EFFORT-MIBC): a phase II prospective trial

Background

The outcome of patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) remains poor, despite aggressive treatments. Inadequate primary staging, classically performed by computed tomography (CT)-imaging, could lead to inappropriate treatment and might contribute to these poor results. Although not (yet) adapted by international guidelines, several reports have indicated the superiority of ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography-CT (¹⁸F-FDG-PET-CT) compared to CT in the detection of lymph node and distant metastases. Thereby the presence of extra-vesical disease on ¹⁸F-FDG-PET-CT has been correlated with a worse overall survival. This supports the hypothesis that ¹⁸F-FDG-PET-CT is useful in stratifying MIBC patients and that adapting the treatment plan accordingly might result in improved outcome.

Methods

EFFORT-MIBC is a multicentric prospective phase II trial aiming to include 156 patients. Eligible patients are patients with histopathology-proven MIBC or ≥ T3 on conventional imaging treated with MIBC radical treatment, without extra-pelvic metastases on conventional imaging (thoracic CT and abdominopelvic CT/ magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)). All patients will undergo radical local therapy and if eligible neo-adjuvant chemotherapy. An ¹⁸F-FDG-PET-CT will be performed in addition to and at the timing of the conventional imaging. In case of presence of extra-pelvic metastasis on ¹⁸F-FDG-PET-CT, appropriate intensification of treatment with metastasis-directed therapy (MDT) (in case of ≤3 metastases) or systemic immunotherapy (> 3 metastases) will be provided. The primary outcome is the 2-year overall survival rate. Secondary endpoints are progression-free survival, distant metastasis-free survival, disease-specific survival and quality of life. Furthermore, the added diagnostic value of ¹⁸F-FDG-PET-CT compared to conventional imaging will be evaluated and biomarkers in tumor specimen, urine and blood will be correlated with primary and secondary endpoints.

Discussion

This is a prospective phase II trial evaluating the impact of ¹⁸F-FDG-PET-CT in stratifying patients with primary MIBC and tailoring the treatment accordingly. We hypothesize that the information on the pelvic nodes can be used to guide local treatment and that the presence of extra-pelvic metastases enables MDT or necessitates the early initiation of immunotherapy leading to an improved outcome.

Trial registration

The Ethics Committee of the Ghent University Hospital (BC-07456) approved this study on 11/5/2020. The trial was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04724928) on 21/1/2021.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12885-021-08861-x.

Intravesical Prostatic Protrusion and Prognosis of Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer: Analysis of Long-Term Data over 5 Years with Machine-Learning Algorithms

We aim to investigate the significance of intravesical prostate protrusion (IPP) on the prognosis of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) after the transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT). For newly diagnosed NMIBC, we retrospectively analyzed the association between prognosis and IPP for at least a 5-year follow-up. A degree of IPP over 5 mm in a preoperative CT scan was classified as severe. The primary endpoint was recurrence-free survival, and the secondary endpoint was progression-free survival. The machine learning (ML) algorithm of a support vector machine was used for predictive model development. Of a total of 122 patients, ultimately, severe IPP was observed in 33 patients (27.0%). IPP correlated positively with age, BPH, recurrence, and prognosis. Severe IPP was significantly higher in the recurrence group and reduced in the recurrence-free survival group (p = 0.038, p = 0.032). Severe IPP independently increased the risk of intravesical recurrence by 2.6 times. The addition of IPP to the known oncological risk factors in the prediction model using the ML algorithm improved the predictability of cancer recurrence by approximately 6%, to 0.803. IPP was analyzed as a potential independent risk factor for NMIBC recurrence and progression after TURBT. This anatomical feature of the prostate could affect the recurrence of bladder tumors.

Young age increases the risk of lymph node positivity but improves prognosis in patients with bladder cancer treated via cystectomy: a population-based study

Background

Age and lymph node positivity are significant prognostic indicators in patients with bladder cancer. This study aimed to investigate the impact of age on lymph node positivity and bladder cancer outcomes.

Methods

Patients with bladder cancer who underwent cystectomy with at least one lymph node examined between 2004 and 2015 were identified from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. Cochran-Armitage trend tests and logistic regression analyses were used to evaluate the association between age and lymph node positivity in all T stages. Multivariate Cox regression analysis was used to analyze the effect of age on overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS).

Results

Overall, 13,251 patients were identified, 648 of whom were under 50 years of age (4.89%). Lymph node positivity was negatively associated with increasing age in each stage except in non-invasive-muscular bladder cancer. In the multivariable analysis, age was an independent prognostic factor for OS and CSS in both the overall cohort and the lymph node positivity group.

Conclusions

In patients with bladder cancer undergoing cystectomy, young age at diagnosis is associated with a higher risk of lymph node positivity and superior outcomes. These findings may guide clinicians in selecting suitable treatments, determining the aggressiveness of lymph node involvement, and predicting survival outcomes in patients of different ages.

Radical cystectomy: a review of techniques, developments and controversies

Radical cystectomy (RC) with urinary diversion is considered the standard treatment for muscle invasive bladder cancer (MIBC). As one of the most challenging surgical techniques performed by urologists, RC was described many decades ago, and yet patient morbidity rates have remained stagnant over the years. This review outlines the most recent indications and techniques for RC and analyses the current landscape of complications after cystectomy. There is significant room for improvement with respect to both oncologic and functional outcomes after RC. Future efforts will need to focus on unifying reporting methodology, optimal patient selection criteria, enhanced surgical techniques and peri-operative care pathways, and technological advances to improve patient outcomes.

Immunotherapy in Bladder Cancer: Current Methods and Future Perspectives

Bladder cancer is one of the most significant genitourinary cancer, causing high morbidity and mortality in a great number of patients. Over the years, various treatment methods for this type of cancer have been developed. The most common is the highly efficient method using Bacillus Calmette-Guerin, giving a successful effect in a high percentage of patients. However, due to the genetic instability of bladder cancer, together with individual needs of patients, the search for different therapy methods is ongoing. Immune checkpoints are cell surface molecules influencing the immune response and decreasing the strength of the immune response. Among those checkpoints, the PD-1 (programmed cell death protein-1)/PD-L1 (programmed cell death protein ligand 1) inhibitors aim at blocking those molecules, which results in T cell activation, and in bladder cancer the use of Atezolizumab, Avelumab, Durvalumab, Nivolumab, and Pembrolizumab has been described. The inhibition of another pivotal immune checkpoint, CTLA-4 (cytotoxic T cell antigen), may result in the mobilization of the immune system against bladder cancer and, among anti-CTLA-4 antibodies, the use of Ipilimumab and Tremelimumab has been discussed. Moreover, several different approaches to successful bladder cancer treatment exists, such as the use of ganciclovir and mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) kinase inhibitors, IL-12 (interleukin-12) and COX-2 (cyclooxygenase-2). The use of gene therapies and the disruption of different signaling pathways are currently being investigated. Research suggests that the combination of several methods increases treatment efficiency and the positive outcome in individual.