Nuclear and stromal expression of Manic fringe in renal cell carcinoma.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common type of kidney cancer and has the highest mortality rate among genitourinary cancers. Despite the advances in molecular targeted therapies to treat RCC, the inevitable emergence of resistance has delineated the need to uncover biomarkers to prospectively identify patient response to treatment and more accurately predict patient prognosis. Fringe is a fucose specific ß1, 3N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase that modifies the Notch receptors. Given the link between its function and aberrant Notch activation in RCC, Fringe may be implicated in this disease. The Fringe homologs comprise of Lunatic fringe (LFng), Manic fringe (MFng) and Radical fringe (RFng). MFng has been reported to play a role in cancer. MFng is also essential in the development of B cells. However, the expression profile and clinical significance of MFng, and its association with B cells in RCC are unknown. CD20 is a clinically employed biomarker for B cells. This pilot study aimed to determine if MFng protein expression can be utilized as a prospective biomarker for therapeutics and prognosis in RCC, as well as to determine its association with CD20+ B cells. Analysis of publicly available MFng gene expression datasets on The Cancer Genome Atlas Netlwork (TCGA) identified MFng gene expression to be up-regulated in Kidney Clear Cell Renal Carcinoma (KIRC) patients. However there was no significant association between the patient survival probability and the level of MFng expression in this cohort. Immunohistochemistry performed on a tissue microarray containing cores from 64 patients revealed an elevated MFng protein expression in the epithelial and stromal tissues of RCC compared to the normal kidney, suggesting a possible role in tumorigenesis. Our study describes for the first time to our knowledge, the protein expression of MFng in the nuclear compartment of normal kidney and RCC, implicating a prospective involvement in gene transcription. At the cellular level, cytoplasmic MFng was also abundant in the normal kidney and RCC. However, MFng protein expression in the malignant epithelial and stromal tissue of RCC had no positive correlation with the patients' overall survival, progression-free survival and time to metastasis, as well as the gender, age, tumor stage and RCC subtype, indicating that MFng may not be an appropriate prognostic marker. The association between CD20+ B cells and epithelial MFng was found to approach borderline insignificance. Nonetheless, these preliminary findings may provide valuable information on the suitability of MFng as a potential therapeutic molecular marker for RCC, thus warrants further investigation using a larger cohort.

Perivascular Neuropilin-1 expression is an independent marker of improved survival in renal cell carcinoma.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) treatment has improved in the last decade with the introduction of drugs targeting tumor angiogenesis. However, the 5-year survival of metastatic disease is still only 10-15%. Here, we explored the prognostic significance of compartment-specific expression of Neuropilin 1 (NRP1), a co-receptor for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). NRP1 expression was analyzed in RCC tumor vessels, in perivascular tumor cells, and generally in the tumor cell compartment. Moreover, complex formation between NRP1 and the main VEGF receptor, VEGFR2, was determined. Two RCC tissue microarrays were used; a discovery cohort consisting of 64 patients and a validation cohort of 314 patients. VEGFR2/NRP1 complex formation in cis (on the same cell) and trans (between cells) configurations was determined by in situ proximity ligation assay (PLA), and NRP1 protein expression in three compartments (endothelial cells, perivascular tumor cells, and general tumor cell expression) was determined by immunofluorescent staining. Expression of NRP1 in perivascular tumor cells was explored as a marker for RCC survival in the two RCC cohorts. Results were further validated using a publicly available gene expression dataset of clear cell RCC (ccRCC). We found that VEGFR2/NRP1 trans complexes were detected in 75% of the patient samples. The presence of trans VEGFR2/NRP1 complexes or perivascular NRP1 expression was associated with a reduced tumor vessel density and size. When exploring NRP1 as a biomarker for RCC prognosis, perivascular NRP1 and general tumor cell NRP1 protein expression correlated with improved survival in the two independent cohorts, and significant results were obtained also at the mRNA level using the publicly available ccRCC gene expression dataset. Only perivascular NRP1 expression remained significant in multivariable analysis. Our work shows that perivascular NRP1 expression is an independent marker of improved survival in RCC patients, and reduces tumor vascularization by forming complexes in trans with VEGFR2 in the tumor endothelium. © 2019 The Authors. The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.

Metastatic papillary renal cell carcinoma in the era of targeted therapy - a retrospective study from three European academic centres.

BACKGROUND: Metastatic papillary renal cell carcinoma (mPRCC) is understudied. The disease is often aggressive and specific treatment options are lacking. PATIENTS AND METHODS: mPRCC patients (n = 86) referred to three academic centres in Sweden and Germany in the years 2005-2015 were retrospectively identified from medical records. Statistical analyses included Kaplan-Meier curves and calculation of Cox proportional hazards, generating hazard ratios with 95% confidence intervals. The aim of the study was to evaluate overall survival (OS) of mPRCC patients treated outside of clinical trials in the era of targeted agents (TA) and to identify clinically useful prognostic factors. RESULTS: Median OS of all mPRCC patients was 11.2 months. TA were used in 77% of the patients and associated with younger age and better Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (PS). Brain metastases were common (28%). Patients with synchronous or metachronous metastases had similar OS. Variables independently associated with risk of death included age ≥60 years, worse PS and ≥3 metastatic sites. The MSKCC criteria did not provide additional prognostic information. A subgroup analysis of TA-treated patients revealed an association of lymph node metastasis with risk of death in addition to the other prognostic factors. CONCLUSION: OS in mPRCC remained short in the era of targeted agents. Age, PS, and number of metastatic sites provided independent prognostic information.

A minority-group of renal cell cancer patients with high infiltration of CD20+B-cells is associated with poor prognosis.

BACKGROUND: The role of B-lymphocytes in solid tumours is unclear. Tumour biology studies have implied both anti- and pro-tumoural effects and prognostic studies have mainly linked B-cells to increased survival. This study aimed to analyse the clinical relevance of B-lymphocytes in renal cell cancer (RCC), where information on the prognostic impact is lacking. METHODS: Following immunohistochemistry (IHC) stainings with a CD20 antibody, density of CD20+ B-cells was quantified in an RCC discovery- and validation cohort. Associations of B-cell infiltration, determined by CD20 expression or a B-cell gene-signature, and survival was also analysed in 14 publicly available gene expression datasets of cancer, including the kidney clear cell carcinoma (KIRC) dataset. RESULTS: IHC analyses of the discovery cohort identified a previously unrecognised subgroup of RCC patients with high infiltration of CD20+ B-cells. The B-cell-high subgroup displayed significantly shorter survival according to uni- and multi-variable analyses. The association between poor prognosis and high density of CD20+ B-cells was confirmed in the validation cohort. Analyses of the KIRC gene expression dataset using the B-cell signature confirmed findings from IHC analyses. Analyses of other gene expression datasets, representing 13 different tumour types, indicated that the poor survival-association of B-cells occurred selectively in RCC. CONCLUSION: This exploratory study identifies a previously unrecognised poor-prognosis subset of RCC with high density of CD20-defined B-cells.

Perivascular PDGFR-ß is an independent marker for prognosis in renal cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a highly vascularised tumour, where anti-angiogenic treatment with multi-tyrosine-kinase-inhibitor, is used for first-line treatment of metastatic disease. Variations in vascular characteristics are likely to contribute to variations in intrinsic aggressiveness of the disease. Emerging studies are identifying perivascular status, including perivascular PDGFR-ß, as a determinant of prognosis in other tumour types. METHODS: This work explored the impact on prognosis of vascular characteristics in RCC through analyses of a population-based collection of tumours from surgery-alone-treated patients. The quantitative data from a panel of vascular metrics were obtained through computerised image analysis of sections double-stained for expression of the endothelial cell marker CD34 together with perivascular markers α-SMA or PDGFR-ß. RESULTS: Perivascular expression of PDGFR-ß and α-SMA were positively correlated to each other, and negatively correlated to vessel density. High expression of PDGFR-ß and α-SMA as well as low vessel density was significantly associated with short survival in uni- and multivariate analyses. Subgroup analyses demonstrated that the prognostic impact of the perivascular markers was particularly prominent in the T4-subgroup. A novel metric, related to PDGFR-ß perivascular heterogeneity, was also associated with prognosis in uni-and multi-variate analyses. This novel metric also acted as a prognosis marker in ovarian cancer. CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrates previously unrecognised associations between RCC survival and the absolute levels, and variability, of perivascular PDGFR-ß. This marker should be further explored in other RCC cohorts. Findings also suggest mechanistic analyses and studies on the relationship between perivascular status and efficacy of multi-tyrosine-kinase-inhibitors.

Pazopanib versus sunitinib in metastatic renal-cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Pazopanib and sunitinib provided a progression-free survival benefit, as compared with placebo or interferon, in previous phase 3 studies involving patients with metastatic renal-cell carcinoma. This phase 3, randomized trial compared the efficacy and safety of pazopanib and sunitinib as first-line therapy. METHODS: We randomly assigned 1110 patients with clear-cell, metastatic renal-cell carcinoma, in a 1:1 ratio, to receive a continuous dose of pazopanib (800 mg once daily; 557 patients) or sunitinib in 6-week cycles (50 mg once daily for 4 weeks, followed by 2 weeks without treatment; 553 patients). The primary end point was progression-free survival as assessed by independent review, and the study was powered to show the noninferiority of pazopanib versus sunitinib. Secondary end points included overall survival, safety, and quality of life. RESULTS: Pazopanib was noninferior to sunitinib with respect to progression-free survival (hazard ratio for progression of disease or death from any cause, 1.05; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.90 to 1.22), meeting the predefined noninferiority margin (upper bound of the 95% confidence interval, <1.25). Overall survival was similar (hazard ratio for death with pazopanib, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.76 to 1.08). Patients treated with sunitinib, as compared with those treated with pazopanib, had a higher incidence of fatigue (63% vs. 55%), the hand-foot syndrome (50% vs. 29%), and thrombocytopenia (78% vs. 41%); patients treated with pazopanib had a higher incidence of increased levels of alanine aminotransferase (60%, vs. 43% with sunitinib). The mean change from baseline in 11 of 14 health-related quality-of-life domains, particularly those related to fatigue or soreness in the mouth, throat, hands, or feet, during the first 6 months of treatment favored pazopanib (P<0.05 for all 11 comparisons). CONCLUSIONS: Pazopanib and sunitinib have similar efficacy, but the safety and quality-of-life profiles favor pazopanib. (Funded by GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals; COMPARZ ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00720941.).

Renal cell carcinoma recurrences and metastases in primary non-metastatic patients: a population-based study.

PURPOSE: To present the occurrence of metastases and local recurrences in primary non-metastatic patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in a contemporary Swedish population-based cohort. METHODS: Between 2005 and 2009, a total of 4527 patients were included in the prospective National Swedish Kidney Cancer Register accounting for nearly all RCC patients in Sweden. Among M0 patients, 472 (13 %) had no follow-up data registered within 5-year follow-up time and were excluded from the analysis. RESULTS: In total, 939 (21 %) had distant metastases at presentation with a decrease from 23 to 18 % during the inclusion period. Of 3107 patients with follow-up data and with M0 disease, 623 (20 %) were diagnosed with a tumor recurrence during 5-year follow-up. Mean time to recurrence was 24 months (SD ± 20 months). Among these, 570 patients (92 %) were at primary diagnosis treated with radical nephrectomy, 23 patients (3.7 %) with partial nephrectomy and 12 patients (1.9 %) with minimally invasive treatments. The most frequent sites of metastases were lung (54 %), lymph nodes (22 %) and bone (20 %). The treatment of recurrence was in 50 % systemic treatments, while metastasectomy was performed in 17 % of the patients, out of which 68 % were with a curative intention. CONCLUSIONS: In this population-based study, 21 % of the patients had metastatic disease at presentation, with a decreasing trend over the study period. During 5-year follow-up, 20 % of the primary non-metastatic patients had recurrent disease. Of the patients with recurrence, half were given systemic oncological treatment and 17 % underwent metastasectomy.

Volumetric FDG-PET predicts overall and progression- free survival after 14 days of targeted therapy in metastatic renal cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: To determine whether changes in the metabolism of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) assessed by F18-FDG-PET after 14 and 28 days of treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors can predict overall and progression- free patient survival. METHODS: Thirty-nine consecutive patients with mRCC were included prospectively and underwent PET examinations prior to and after 14 and 28 days of standard treatment with sunitinib (n=18), sorafenib (n=19) or pazopanib (n=2). The PET response was analyzed in terms of SUVmax, SULpeak, and total lesion glycolysis and a positive response (defined as a 30% reduction) compared to overall and progression- free survival. RESULTS: Thirty-five patients with at least one metabolically active metastatic lesion prior to treatment underwent additional FDG-PET examinations after 14 (n=32) and/or 28 days (n=30) of treatment. Changes in either SULpeak or total lesion glycolysis were correlated to both progression-free and overall survival (for TLG2.5 responders, HR=0.38 (95% CI: 0.18-0.83) and 0.22 (95% CI: 0.09-0.53), and for TLG50 responders, HR=0.25 (0.10-0.62) and 0.25 (95% CI: 0.11-0.57) and for SULpeak responders, HR=0.39 (95% CI: 0.17-0.91) and 0.38 (95% CI: 0.15-0.93), respectively). In contrast SUVmax response did not predict progression- free or overall survival (HR=0.43 (95% CI: 0.18-1.01) and 0.50 (95% CI: 0.21-1.19), respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Assessment of early changes in SULpeak and total lesion glycolysis undergoing treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors by FDG-PET can possibly predict progression- free and overall survival in patients with mRCC.

2-Weekly versus 3-weekly docetaxel to treat castration-resistant advanced prostate cancer: a randomised, phase 3 trial.

BACKGROUND: Docetaxel administered every 3 weeks is a standard treatment for castration-resistant advanced prostate cancer. We hypothesised that 2-weekly administration of docetaxel would be better tolerated than 3-weekly docetaxel in patients with castration-resistant advanced prostate cancer, and did a prospective, multicentre, randomised, phase 3 study to compare efficacy and safety. METHODS: Eligible patients had advanced prostate cancer (metastasis, a prostate-specific-antigen test result of more than 10·0 ng/mL, and WHO performance status score of 0-2), had received no chemotherapy (except with estramustine), had undergone surgical or chemical castration, and had been referred to a treatment centre in Finland, Ireland, or Sweden. Enrolment and treatment were done between March 1, 2004, and May 31, 2009. Randomisation was done centrally and stratified by centre and WHO performance status score of 0-1 vs 2. Patients were assigned 75 mg/m(2) docetaxel intravenously on day 1 of a 3-week cycle, or 50 mg/m(2) docetaxel intravenously on days 1 and 15 of a 4-week cycle. 10 mg oral prednisolone was administered daily to all patients. The primary endpoint was time to treatment failure (TTTF). We assessed data in the per-protocol population. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT00255606. FINDINGS: 177 patients were randomly assigned to the 2-weekly docetaxel group and 184 to the 3-weekly group. 170 patients in the 2-weekly group and 176 in the 3-weekly group were included in the analysis. The 2-weekly administration was associated with significantly longer TTTF than was 3-weekly administration (5·6 months, 95% CI 5·0-6·2 vs 4·9 months, 4·5-5·4; hazard ratio 1·3, 95% CI 1·1-1·6, p=0·014). Grade 3-4 adverse events occurred more frequently in the 3-weekly than in the 2-weekly administration group, including neutropenia (93 [53%] vs 61 [36%]), leucopenia (51 [29%] vs 22 [13%]), and febrile neutropenia (25 [14%] vs six [4%]). Neutropenic infections were reported more frequently in patients who received docetaxel every 3 weeks (43 [24%] vs 11 [6%], p=0·002). INTERPRETATION: Administration of docetaxel every 2 weeks seems to be well tolerated in patients with castration-resistant advanced prostate cancer and could be a useful option when 3-weekly single-dose administration is unlikely to be tolerated. FUNDING: Sanofi.

Systemic inflammatory syndromes as life-threatening side effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors: case report and systematic review of the literature.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are associated with a wide range of immune-related adverse events. As oncological indications for ICIs widen, their rare side effects become increasingly visible in clinical practice and impact therapy decisions.Here, we report a rare case of early-onset, mild cytokine release syndrome (CRS) in a patient who received ICIs for a metastasized renal cell carcinoma, which led to treatment discontinuation.We further provide a systematic review of the literature of CRS and related life-threatening side effects of ICI treatment, such as hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). We searched Medline, Embase and the Web of Science Core Collection from inception to October 2021 for reports on CRS, cytokine storm, macrophage activation syndrome, HLH, and related hyperinflammatory disorders in patients with solid cancers receiving ICIs. We found n=1866 articles, which were assessed for eligibility independently by two examiners. Of those, n=49 articles reporting on n=189 individuals were eligible for review. We found that the median time from last infusion to the occurrence of CRS/HLH was approximately nine days, while the onset of symptoms varied from immediately after infusion to one month after treatment. Most patients were treated with either corticosteroids or the anti-interleukin 6 (IL-6) antibody tocilizumab, and although the majority of patients recovered, a few cases were fatal. Concomitant IL-6 and ICI treatment were reported as beneficial for both the antitumoral effect and for limiting side effects. Data from international pharmacovigilance databases underscored that ICI-related CRS and HLH are rare events, but we identified significant differences in reported frequencies, which might suggest substantial under-reporting.The results from this first systematic review of CRS/HLH due to ICI therapy highlight that life-threatening systemic inflammatory complications of ICIs are rare and might be associated with fatal outcome in approximately 10% of patients. Limited data support the use of IL-6 inhibitors in combination with ICIs to augment the antitumoral effect and reduce hyperinflammation.

Clinical T1a Renal Cell Carcinoma, Not Always a Harmless Disease-A National Register Study.

Background: T1a renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is typically considered a curable disease, irrespective of the choice of local treatment modality. Objective: To identify factors associated with the risk of local and distant recurrence, and overall survival (OS) in patients with primary nonmetastatic clinical T1a RCC. Design setting and participants: A population-based nationwide register study of all 1935 patients with cT1a RCC, diagnosed during 2005-2012, identified through The National Swedish Kidney Cancer Register, was conducted. Outcome measurements and statistical analysis: Outcome variables were recurrence (local or distant) and OS. Possible explanatory variables included tumor size, RCC type, T stage, surgical technique, age, and gender. Associations with disease recurrence and OS were evaluated by multivariable regression and Cox multivariate analyses, respectively. Results and limitations: Among 1935 patients, 938 were treated with radical nephrectomy, 738 with partial nephrectomy, and 169 with ablative treatments, while 90 patients had no surgery. Seventy-eight (4%) patients were upstaged to pT3. Local or metastatic recurrences occurred in 145 (7.5%) patients, significantly more often after ablation (17.8%). The risk of recurrence was associated with tumor size, upstaging, and ablation. Larger tumor size, disease recurrence, and older age adversely affected OS, whereas partial nephrectomy and chromophobe RCC (chRCC) were associated with improved survival. Limitations include register design and a lack of comorbidity or performance status data. Conclusions: Upstaging and recurrence occurred, respectively, in 4.0% and 7.5% of patients with nonmetastatic RCCs ≤4 cm. Tumor size upstaging and ablation were associated with the risk for recurrence, while tumor size and recurrence were associated with decreased OS. Patients with chRCC and partial nephrectomy had prolonged OS in a real-world setting. Patient summary: We studied factors that may influence the risk of disease recurrence and overall survival, in a large nationwide patient cohort having nonmetastatic renal cell carcinoma ≤4 cm. Tumor size, tumor type, and treatment were associated with the risk of recurrence and overall death. Partial nephrectomy prolonged overall survival.

Surgical waiting times and all-cause mortality in patients with non-metastatic renal cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between surgical waiting times (SWTs) and all-cause mortality (ACM) in non-metastatic patients with RCC, in relation to tumour stage. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This nation-wide population-based cohort study included 9,918 M0 RCC patients registered in the National Swedish Kidney Cancer Register, between 2009 and 2021, followed-up for ACM until 9 December 2021, and having measured SWTs. The associations between primarily SWTs from date of radiological diagnosis to date of surgery (WRS) and secondarily SWTs from date of radiological diagnosis to date of treatment decision (WRT) and date of treatment decision to date of surgery (WTS), in relation to ACM, were analysed using Cox regression analysis, adjusted for clinical and demographic characteristics, stratified and unstratified according to T-stage. RESULTS: During a mean follow-up time of 5 years (49,873 person-years), 23% (n = 2291) of the patients died. The adjusted hazard ratio (AHR) for WRS (months) for all patients was 1.03 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02-1.04; p < 0.001). When subdividing WRS on T-stage, the AHRs were 1.03 (95% CI = 1.01-1.04; p < 0.001) and 1.05 (95% CI = 1.02-1.08; p = 0.003) for stages T1 and T3, respectively, while non-significant for T2 (p = 0.079) and T4 (p = 0.807). Similar results were obtained for WRT and WTS. CONCLUSIONS: Prolonged SWTs significantly increased the risk of early overall death among patients with RCC. The increased risk of early death from any cause show the importance of shortening SWTs in clinical work of patients with this malignant disease.

Economic evaluation of new targeted therapies for the first-line treatment of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: • To assess the economic value of targeted therapies as first-line metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) treatment in the US and Sweden by indirect comparison of survival data. METHODS: • A Markov model simulated disease progression, adverse events and survival with sunitinib vs sorafenib in the US and bevacizumab plus interferon-α (IFN-α) in both countries. • Results, in life-years (LYs), progression-free LYs (PFLYs), quality-adjusted LYs (QALYs) gained and treatment costs (2008 USD) were obtained through deterministic and probabilistic analyses over the patient's lifetime. RESULTS: • Sunitinib was more effective and less costly than sorafenib (gains of 0.52 PFLYs, 0.16 LYs and 0.17 QALYs and savings/patient of $13,576 in the US) and bevacizumab plus IFN-α (gains of 0.19 PFLYs, 0.23 LYs and 0.16 QALYs in both countries and savings/patient of $67,798 and $47,264 in the US and Sweden, respectively). • Results were most influenced by hazard ratios for progression-free and overall survival and treatment costs, making results generalizable across other countries if relative costs were to fall within the ranges of those in the US and Sweden. CONCLUSION: • The present analyses suggest that first-line mRCC treatment with sunitinib is a cost-effective alternative to sorafenib and bevacizumab plus IFN-α.

Curative radiation therapy in prostate cancer.

Radiotherapy has experienced an extremely rapid development in recent years. Important improvements such as the introduction of multileaf collimators and computed tomography (CT)-based treatment planning software have enabled three dimensional conformal external beam radiation therapy (3DCRT). The development of treatment planning systems and technology for brachytherapy has been very rapid as well. Development of accelerators with integrated on-board imaging equipment and technology, for example image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) has further improved the precision with reduced margins to adjacent normal tissues. This has, in turn, led to the possibility to administer even higher doses to the prostate than previously. Although radiotherapy and radical prostatectomy have been used for the last decades as curative treatment modalities, still there are no randomized trials published comparing these two options. Outcome data show that the two treatment modalities are highly comparable when used for low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer.

The renal cell cancer database Sweden (RCCBaSe) - a new register-based resource for renal cell carcinoma research.

Introduction: In 2005, the National Swedish Kidney Cancer Register (NSKCR) was set up to collect data on newly diagnosed patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC). In 2015, the NSKCR was linked to a number of national healthcare and demographic registers to construct the Renal Cell Cancer Database Sweden (RCCBaSe). The aim was to facilitate research on trends in incidence, effects of treatment and survival, with detailed data on tumour characteristics, treatment, pharmaceutical prescriptions, socioeconomic factors and comorbidity.Material and methods: All patients registered in the NSKCR between 2005 and 2014 were included. For each case, ten controls and first-degree relatives for cases and controls were identified. The RCCBaSe was created linking all cases, controls and first-degree relatives to a number of national registers with information on co-morbidity, socioeconomic factors and pharmaceutical prescriptions.Results: Between 2005 and 2014, a total of 9,416 patients with RCC were reported to the NSKCR. 94,159 controls and a total cohort of 575,007 individuals including cases, controls and first-degree relatives were identified. Linkage to the Swedish cancer register resulted in 106,772 matches. When linked to the National patient register, 432,677 out-patient and 471,359 in-patient matches were generated. When linked to the Swedish renal registry 1,778 matches were generated. Linkage to the Prescribed drug register resulted in 448,084 matches and linkage to the The Longitudinal integration database for health insurance and labour market studies database resulted in 450,017 matches.Conclusion: By linking the NSKCR to several Swedish national databases, a unique database for RCC research has been created.

Survival advantage of upfront cytoreductive nephrectomy in patients with primary metastatic renal cell carcinoma compared with systemic and palliative treatments in a real-world setting.

BACKGROUND: Recently, the CARMENA and SURTIME studies, suggested that upfront cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN) should be abandoned for patients with intermediate and high-risk metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). However, CN remains an indication in low-risk and when immediate systemic treatment is not required. The aim was to evaluate the long-term overall survival (OS) in patients with primary mRCC, based on the first line treatment. METHODS: There were 1483 patients with primary mRCC in the National Kidney Cancer Registry from 2005 to 2013. Data on primary treatment, TNM stage, RCC type, tumor size, patient age and sex were extracted. Survival time was calculated from time of diagnosis to time of death or until July 2019. Mann-Whitney U and Chi-square tests, the Kaplan-Meyer method and Cox regression analyses were used. RESULTS: Patients primary treated with CN had a significantly longer OS (p < .001) than patients primary treated with systemic therapy or palliation. In a Cox regression multivariate analysis, the hazard ratio for CN compared with no CN was 1.600, 95%Ci (1.492 - 1.691), p < .001. Also occurrence of lymph node metastases, T-stage, patients age and year of diagnosis, remained as independent predictors of OS. CONCLUSION: Patients primary treated with CN survived significantly longer than patients primary treated with systemic therapy or palliation, in all age groups. CN was an important first-line treatment option in mRCC patients.

Real-world cost-effectiveness of targeted therapy in metastatic renal cell carcinoma in Sweden: a population-based retrospective analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To explore cost-effectiveness of targeted therapies (TTs) in the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) in a real-world context using a nationwide population-based approach. METHODS: Data on patients diagnosed with mRCC between 2002 and 2012 were extracted from Swedish national health data registers. To facilitate comparisons of patients diagnosed before and after TT introduction to the market, three cohorts were derived: pre-TT introduction (preTT), patients diagnosed 2002-2005; early TT introduction (TTi), patients diagnosed 2006-2008; and late TT introduction (TTii), which was limited to patients diagnosed 2009-2010 to ensure availability of total health care resource utilization (HCRU) data. Patients were followed until end of 2012. The value of TTs across cohorts was estimated using mean HCRU costs per life-year (LY) gained. Data on HCRU were obtained through national health registers for dispensed medication and inpatient and outpatient care, and the associated costs were estimated using the Lin method to account for censoring. LYs gained were defined as the difference in mean survival over the study period. RESULTS: The preTT, TTi, and TTii cohorts consisted of 1,366, 1,158, and 806 patients, respectively. Mean survival in years from mRCC diagnosis was 1.45 in the preTT cohort, 1.62 in the TTi cohort, and 1.83 in the TTii cohort. The respective mean total HCRU cost per patient over the study period was US$16,894, US$29,922, and US$30,037. The cost per LY gained per cohort was US$78,656 for TTi vs preTT, US$34,132 for TTii vs preTT, and US$523 for TTii vs TTi. CONCLUSION: Given common willingness-to-pay per LY gained thresholds, this study in a real-world population suggests the use of TTs in the Swedish mRCC population is increasingly cost-effective over time.

Detection of pancreatic cancer using antibody microarray-based serum protein profiling.

The driving force behind oncoproteomics is to identify protein signatures that are associated with a particular malignancy. Here, we have used a recombinant scFv antibody microarray in an attempt to classify sera derived from pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients versus healthy subjects. Based on analysis of nonfractionated, directly labeled, whole human serum proteomes we have identified a protein signature based on 19 nonredundant analytes, that discriminates between cancer patients and healthy subjects. Furthermore, a potential protein signature, consisting of 21 protein analytes, could be defined that was shown to be associated with cancer patients having a life expectancy of <12 months. Taken together, the data suggest that antibody microarray analysis of complex proteomes will be a useful tool to define disease associated protein signatures.

Overall survival in Swedish patients with renal cell carcinoma treated in the period 2002 to 2012: Update of the RENCOMP study with subgroup analysis of the synchronous metastatic and elderly populations.

BACKGROUND: This retrospective study investigated overall survival (OS) and factors influencing OS in Swedish patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) during the pre- (2002-2005), early (2006-2008), and late (2009-2012) targeted therapy (TT) era. METHODS: Three national Swedish registries identified patients with mRCC. Median OS was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Multivariate analysis was performed using Cox proportional hazards regression. Subgroup analysis was conducted for patients with synchronous metastases (M1) and the elderly (aged≥75y). RESULTS: A total of 4,217 patients with mRCC were identified, including 1,533 patients with M1 and 1,275 elderly patients. For patients with mRCC diagnosed in 2002 to 2005, 2006 to 2008, and 2009 to 2012, median OS was 10.0, 13.0, and 18.0 months. Similarly, median OS improved in the M1 and elderly populations. Elderly patients were less likely to be prescribed TT (≥75 vs.<75y): 18.3 vs. 63.5% (in 2006-2008) and 28.6% vs. 55.9% (in 2009-2012). Diagnosis of mRCC in 2009 to 2012, nephrectomy and TT prescription were associated with improved OS in the total mRCC, M1, and elderly populations. CONCLUSION: This real-world study showed continued significant improvement in mRCC OS during the late TT era, including in M1 and elderly populations. TT should be considered for all patients with mRCC based on tolerability, regardless of age.