Utilization of Partial Cytoreductive Nephrectomy in Patients with Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma.

OBJECTIVES: Cytoreductive nephrectomy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) is a standard of care. Partial nephrectomy (PN) in the setting of metastatic disease is an uncommon occurrence, and we aimed to characterize its utilization in a modern cohort. METHODS: The National Cancer Database was reviewed for patients with mRCC from 2010 to 2017. Patients with cTanyNanyM1 who underwent cytoreductive surgery in the form of PN or radical nephrectomy (RN) were compiled. Our primary outcome was survival outcome for patients who underwent PN compared to RN. Secondary outcomes included 30-day readmission, length of stay, and survival outcomes. RESULTS OBTAINED: A total of 13,896 patients with mRCC who underwent cytoreductive surgery were identified. In total, 13,242 underwent RN and 654 underwent PN. The RN population was more likely to have cN positive disease, while the PN population was more likely to have cT1 disease. Length of stay, readmission and 30-day mortality were not significantly different between PN and RN, but overall mortality and 90-day mortality favored PN (p < 0.001). Cox regression for death showed PN with improved overall survival (HR 0.782, p < 0.001). Logistic regression for predictors of cytoreductive PN revealed cT1 and cN0 as significant factors. Overall survival, as seen on KM analysis, identified that PN exhibited improved 2-year (67.1% vs. 52.0%) and 5-year (40.7% vs. 29.2%) overall survival relative to RN (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: PN is an infrequent treatment with mRCC and its utilization is stable from 2010 to 2017. Overall survival is significantly better for those undergoing PN, likely due to their favorable oncologic disease characteristics.

Long-term outcomes of bladder-sparing therapy vs radical cystectomy in BCG-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the oncological risks of bladder-sparing therapy (BST) in patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) compared to upfront radical cystectomy (RC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Pre-specified data elements were collected from retrospective cohorts of patients with BCG-unresponsive NMIBC from 10 international sites. After Institutional Review Board approval, patients were included if they had BCG-unresponsive NMIBC meeting United States Food and Drug Administration criteria. Oncological outcomes were collected following upfront RC or BST. BST regimens included re-resection or surveillance only, repeat BCG, intravesical chemotherapy, systemic immunotherapy, and clinical trials. RESULTS: Among 578 patients, 28% underwent upfront RC and 72% received BST. The median (interquartile range) follow-up was 50 (20-69) months. There were no statistically significant differences in metastasis-free survival, cancer-specific survival, or overall survival between treatment groups. In the BST group, high-grade recurrence rates were 37% and 52% at 12 and 24 months and progression to MIBC was observed in 7% and 13% at 12 and 24 months, respectively. RC was performed in 31.7% in the BST group and nodal disease was found in 13% compared with 4% in upfront RC (P = 0.030). CONCLUSION: In a selected cohort of patients, initial BST offers comparable survival outcomes to upfront RC in the intermediate term. Rates of recurrence and progression increase over time especially in patients treated with additional lines of BST.

Cost-utility of Initial Management of High-grade T1 Bladder Cancer With Intravesical BCG vs Immediate Radical Cystectomy.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the cost-utility of initial management of high-grade T1 non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (HGT1 NMIBC) with intravesical BCG vs immediate radical cystectomy. High-risk NMIBC patients may climb a costly ladder of treatments, culminating in radical cystectomy for oncologic or symptomatic benefit in up to one-third. This high healthcare resource utilization presents a challenging dilemma in balancing sufficiently aggressive management with cost, toxicity, and quality-of-life. METHODS: Cost-utility of initially managing HGT1 with intravesical BCG and early radical cystectomy with ileal conduit urinary diversion was compared using decision-analytic Markov models. Five-year oncologic outcomes, adverse event rates, and published utility values were extracted from literature. Costs were calculated from a US Medicare perspective in 2021 US dollars. Sensitivity analysis identified drivers of cost and break-even points for recurrence and progression. RESULTS: Mean costs were $26,093 for intravesical BCG and $39,720 for immediate radical cystectomy, though cystectomy generated a gain of 2.2 quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) compared to intravesical BCG. Immediate cystectomy was a more cost-effective management strategy for HGT1 NMIBC with an incremental CE ratios (ICER) of $7120/QALY. The costs associated with cystectomy, TURBT, and BCG toxicity had the greatest impact on ICER. One-way sensitivity analysis demonstrated that intravesical BCG became a cost-effective management strategy if the 5-year recurrence rate of HG T1 was less than 56% or the 5-year progression rate to MIBC was less than 4%. CONCLUSION: At current prices, treatment of high-grade T1 NMIBC with early radical cystectomy is more cost-effective management strategy than initial treatment with intravesical BCG.

Age related trends in the utilization of neoadjuvant chemotherapy for muscle invasive bladder cancer.

PURPOSE: The current standard of care for muscle invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) is neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) followed by radical cystectomy (RC). Previous research has shown under-utilization of NAC for treatment of MIBC, especially among the elderly. Our aim was to stratify NAC use by decade of life and analyze trends in use over time along with recording pathologic downstaging and perioperative outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The National Cancer Database was queried for patients with cT2-4NanyM0 MIBC treated with RC from 2010 to 2016 with urothelial carcinoma. Nineteen thousand nine hundred fifty seven patients met criteria for analysis. We retrospectively analyzed trends in use of NAC, readmission rate, mortality rate, and pathologic downstaging with NAC all stratified by decade of life. RESULTS: Of the 19,957 patients treated with RC for MIBC, only 30.9% underwent NAC. There was a statistically significant increase in NAC use across all age groups from 2010 to 2016. Receipt of NAC was associated with decreased age on univariate analysis (P < 0.001) and on logistic regression (OR: 0.617 for age 70-79, OR: 0.221 for age ≥80 vs. age <60; P < 0.001). Patients receiving NAC were more likely to exhibit pathologic downstaging at time of RC (OR: 3.907; P < 0.001), and this trend held for each age group examined. Among patients receiving NAC, the risk of 30 and 90-day mortality was associated with increasing age; however, age was not associated with 30-day readmission for those receiving NAC. CONCLUSION: Rates of NAC use prior to RC have increased among all age groups with the lowest utilization rate among the elderly. NAC use was associated with greater pathologic downstaging in all age groups. These data show a promising trend in the uptake of the gold standard for treatment of MIBC; however, the underlying etiology of differing rates of NAC utilization remains to be determined.

Novel Use of Circulating Tumor DNA to Identify Muscle-invasive and Non-organ-confined Upper Tract Urothelial Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Optimal patient selection for neoadjuvant chemotherapy prior to surgical extirpation is limited by the inaccuracy of contemporary clinical staging methods in high-risk upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC). OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the detection of plasma circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) can predict muscle-invasive (MI) and non-organ-confined (NOC) UTUC. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Plasma cell-free DNA was prospectively collected from chemotherapy-naïve, high-risk UTUC patients undergoing surgical extirpation and sequenced using a 152-gene panel and low-pass whole-genome sequencing. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: To test for concordance, whole-exome sequencing was performed on matching tumor samples. The performance of ctDNA for predicting MI/NOC UTUC was summarized using the area under a receiver-operating curve, and a variant count threshold for predicting MI/NOC disease was determined by maximizing Youden's J statistic. Kaplan-Meier methods estimated survival, and Mantel-Cox log-rank testing assessed the association between preoperative ctDNA positivity and clinical outcomes. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: Of 30 patients enrolled prospectively, 14 were found to have MI/NOC UTUC. At least one ctDNA variant was detected from 21/30 (70%) patients, with 52% concordance with matching tumor samples. Detection of at least two panel-based molecular alterations yielded 71% sensitivity at 94% specificity to predict MI/NOC UTUC. Imposing this threshold in combination with a plasma copy number burden score of >6.5 increased sensitivity to 79% at 94% specificity. Furthermore, the presence of ctDNA was strongly prognostic for progression-free survival (PFS; 1-yr PFS 69% vs 100%, p < 0.001) and cancer-specific survival (CSS; 1-yr CSS 56% vs 100%, p = 0.016). CONCLUSIONS: The detection of plasma ctDNA prior to extirpative surgery was highly predictive of MI/NOC UTUC and strongly prognostic of PFS and CSS. Preoperative ctDNA demonstrates promise as a biomarker for selecting patients to undergo neoadjuvant chemotherapy prior to nephroureterectomy. PATIENT SUMMARY: Here, we show that DNA from upper tract urothelial tumors can be detected in the blood prior to surgical removal of the kidney or ureter. This circulating tumor DNA can be used to predict that upper tract urothelial carcinoma is invasive into the muscular lining of the urinary tract and may help identify those patients who could benefit from chemotherapy prior to surgery.

Sequential Intravesical Gemcitabine and Docetaxel is an Alternative to Bacillus Calmette-Guérin for the Treatment of Intermediate-risk Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer.

Adjuvant treatment with either chemotherapy or bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is recommended for patients with intermediate-risk (IR) non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). In this multi-institutional retrospective review, we evaluated oncological outcomes for 182 patients with IR-NMIBC treated with BCG (n = 100) or intravesical sequential gemcitabine and docetaxel (Gem/Doce; n = 82). Median follow-up was 48.6 mo (interquartile range 24.9-70.9). No patient had a previous diagnosis of high-grade disease. Recurrence rates were similar in the two treatment groups (hazard ratio [HR] 1.06, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.65-1.73; p = 0.8). Results were consistent after adjusting for International Bladder Cancer Group (IBCG) risk subgroups, use of single-instillation postoperative chemotherapy, use of blue light cystoscopy, and receipt of maintenance therapy (HR 0.88, 95% CI 0.47-1.64; p = 0.7). Similarly, there was no difference in the rate of stage/grade progression between the treatment groups (HR 0.66, 95% CI 0.21-2.12; p = 0.5). Rates of progression to muscle-invasive disease/metastasis (2.2%) and cancer-specific mortality (1.7%) were low in the cohort. Our results support the use of Gem/Doce as an alternative to BCG in patients with IR-NMIBC. PATIENT SUMMARY: We compared cancer control outcomes for two different treatments for intermediate-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer. Our results show that a chemotherapy combination of docetaxel and gemcitabine is as effective as the BCG (bacillus Calmette-Guérin) treatment traditionally used for this type of bladder cancer.

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Toxicity Management in Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer: What Urologists Need To Know.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have emerged as a treatment option for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer. Urologists need to be aware of the indications for ICI treatment in this setting and the systemic toxicities associated with these agents. We provide a brief overview of the most common treatment-related adverse events reported in the literature and summarize guidelines for their management. PATIENT SUMMARY: Immunotherapy is now being used as a treatment option for bladder cancer that does not invade the bladder muscle. Urologists need to become comfortable in recognizing and managing adverse effects associated with immunotherapy drugs.

Survival Benefits of Adjuvant Chemotherapy for Positive Soft Tissue Surgical Margins Following Radical Cystectomy in Bladder Cancer with Extravesical Extension.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Muscle invasive bladder cancer with extravesical extension is an aggressive disease entity that requires multimodal therapy. The benefits of adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) in patients with a positive soft-tissue surgical margin (STSM), however, are relatively unknown due to exclusion of this population in randomized controlled trials of AC. We sought to define survival benefits in this patient population through our institutional bladder cancer database. METHODS: Retrospective review of all patients undergoing radical cystectomy for urothelial carcinoma of the bladder from 2004-2020 with ≥pT3b disease irrespective of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) use was conducted. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) estimates were obtained using the Kaplan-Meier method with log-rank test, and the Cox-proportional hazards model was used to identify predictors of improved PFS and OS. AC was defined by any chemotherapy use within 90 days of cystectomy, regardless of STSM status. RESULTS: 476 patients with pT3b disease or worse were identified. Median follow-up was 12.3 months. An amount of 21% of patients were treated with AC. An amount of 24% of patients had positive STSM. Median OS for patients with positive STSM was 8.4 months [95% CI 7-11.5] and 18.3 months [95% CI 15.6-20.8] (p < 0.001) for patients with negative STSM. In the overall cohort, positive STSM (HR 1.93, 95% CI 1.45-2.57, p < 0.001), AC use (HR 0.68, 95% CI 0.51-0.90, p = 0.007), and pN1-3 disease (HR 1.47, 95% CI 1.16-1.87, p = 0.002) were independent predictors of OS when adjusted for performance status, pT-stage, and neoadjuvant chemotherapy use. In patients with positive STSM, median survival was seven months [95% CI 5.2-8.4] without AC, compared to 16.2 months [95% CI 11.5-52.5] with AC (p = 0.0038). For patients with negative STSM, median survival was 17.4 months [95% CI 14-20.1] without AC compared to 22.3 months [95% CI 17.2-36.9] with AC (p = 0.23). In patients with positive STSM, AC use was the only factor associated with an OS benefit with a HR of 0.41 (95% CI 0.21-0.78, p = 0.007). In patients with negative STSM, pT4 and pN1-3 disease were the only factors associated with worse overall survival with a HR of 1.32 (95% CI 1.00-1.74, p = 0.050) and 1.97 (95% CI 1.49-2.60, p < 0.001), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Administration of adjuvant chemotherapy is of particular benefit in patients with positive STSM following radical cystectomy for gross extravesical disease. Positive STSM may be a representative of "early metastatic" or micrometastatic disease.

Impact of surgical margin and extent of lymphadenectomy on oncologic outcomes in plasmacytoid urothelial carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: Guideline recommendations disagree on template boundaries for pelvic lymph node dissection (PLND) in conventional urothelial carcinoma. Less is known about PLND in variant histology. We aimed to analyze the role of LND in plasmacytoid urothelial carcinoma (PUC). METHODS: A retrospective review of patients with cTanyNanyM0 PUC who underwent radical cystectomy (RC) with PLND was performed from 2012 to 2022. Lymph node count (LNC) was a surrogate for extent of lymph node dissection and dichotomized based on maximally selected rank statistics. Multivariable cox hazard regression analysis (MVA) for overall survival (OS) corrected for age, perioperative chemotherapy, soft tissue margin status, and stage ≥pT3 and/or pN+ was performed. Disease free survival (DFS) and OS were estimated using Kaplan-Meier (KM) analysis. RESULTS: Sixty-seven patients with median age of 71, who were 79.1% male were included. Neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemotherapy were administered in 61.2% and 19.4% of patients, respectively. At RC, 70.1% were ≥pT3. Median LNC was 22 (IQR 14-27) with 43.3% of patients being pN+. Calculated optimal-LNC cut point for DFS and OS was 19. Grouping by optimal (≥20) vs. suboptimal-LNC (<20), no significant clinicodemographic differences were found. Optimal-LNC provided improved DFS (P = 0.05) and OS (P = 0.02). Optimal-LNC (HR 0.47, 0.24-0.93 CI 95%, P = 0.03) and negative soft tissue margin (HR 0.38, 0.19-0.76 CI 95%, P = 0.01) was associated with improved OS on MVA. Receipt of perioperative chemotherapy did not improve OS (P = 0.46). CONCLUSION: In PUC, complete surgical extirpation achieving negative soft tissue margins and removing ≥20 lymph should be prioritized if operative intervention is pursued.

Cytoreductive Nephrectomy Following Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy Is Safe and Facilitates Treatment-free Intervals.

Patients with metastatic renal cell cancer (mRCC) who respond to upfront immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) combination therapies may be treated with cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN) to remove radiographically viable primary tumors. Early data for post-ICI CN suggested that ICI therapies induce desmoplastic reactions in some patients, increasing the risk of surgical complications and perioperative mortality. We evaluated perioperative outcomes for 75 consecutive patients treated with post-ICI CN at four institutions from 2017 to 2022. Our cohort of 75 patients had minimal or no residual metastatic disease but radiographically enhancing primary tumors after ICI and were treated with CN. Intraoperative complications were identified in 3/75 patients (4%) and 90-d postoperative complications in 19/75 (25%), including two patients (3%) with high-grade (Clavien ≥III) complications. One patient was readmitted within 30 d. No patients died within 90 d after surgery. Viable tumor was present in all but one specimen. Approximately half of the patients (36/75, 48%) remained off systemic therapy at last follow-up. These data suggest that CN following ICI therapy is safe and associated with low rates of major postoperative complications in appropriately selected patients at experienced centers. Post-ICI CN may facilitate observation without additional systemic therapy in patients without significant residual metastatic disease. Patient summary: Current first-line treatment for patients with kidney cancer that has spread to other sites (metastatic cancer) is immunotherapy. For cases in which metastatic sites respond to this therapy but primary tumor is still detected in the kidney, surgical treatment of the tumor is feasible and has a low rate of complications, and may delay the need for further chemotherapy.

Perioperative outcomes of open versus robot-assisted radical cystectomy in octogenarians: a population based analysis.

Octogenarians undergoing cystectomy experience higher morbidity and mortality compared to younger patients. Though the non-inferiority of robot-assisted radical cystectomy (RARC) compared to open radical cystectomy (ORC) has been established in a generalized population, the benefits of the robotic approach have not been well studied in an aged population. The National Cancer Database (NCDB) was queried for all patients who underwent cystectomy for bladder cancer from 2010 to 2016. Of these, 2527 were performed in patients age 80 or older; 1988 and 539 underwent ORC and RARC, respectively. On Cox regression analysis, RARC was associated with significantly reduced odds for both 30- and 90-day mortality (HR 0.404, p = 0.004; HR 0.694, p = 0.031, respectively), though the association with overall mortality was not significant (HR 0.877, p = 0.061). The robotic group had a significantly shorter length of stay (LOS) compared to open surgery (10.3 days ORC vs. 9.3 days RARC, p = 0.028). The proportion of cases performed robotically increased over the study period from 12.2% in 2010 to 28.4% in 2016 (p = 0.009, R2 = 0.774). The study is limited by a retrospective design and a section bias, which was not completely control for in the analysis. In conclusion, RARC provides improved perioperative outcomes in aged patients compared to ORC and a trend toward greater utilization of this technique was observed.

Variant histology in upper tract carcinomas: Analysis of the National Cancer Database.

INTRODUCTION: Upper urinary tract malignancies are relatively uncommon, with the majority representing urothelial carcinoma (UC). Variant histology (VH) is rare but has been increasingly shown to confer worse prognoses, and standardized approaches to treatment for upper tract cancers with VH have not been established. Our study aimed to analyze outcomes amongst various treatment modalities for upper tract malignancies based on VH subtype. Additionally, we stratified mortality outcomes associated with the upper tract tumors based on their primary location in the renal pelvis (RP) versus ureter. METHODS: The National Cancer Database was queried for patients who were diagnosed with upper tract malignancy of the RP or ureter from 2005 to 2016. Populations were grouped based on tumor location (RP vs. ureter) and substratified based on tumor histology (UC vs. VH). Cox regression (CR) was used for multivariable survival analysis. RESULTS: A total of 63,826 patients with upper tract malignancies met inclusion criteria: 36,692 (57.5%) cases involving the RP and 27,134 (42.5%) cases involving the ureter. VH was noted in 2.5% of all tumors with the squamous cell variant being the most common subtype (62.5%). VH presented with higher stage, increased mortality, and higher proportion of metastatic disease relative to UC.  Patients with VH were less likely to undergo surgical intervention and more likely to receive radiation or adjuvant chemotherapy. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy was not associated with tumor downstaging for VH. On multivariable CR, receiving definitive surgical excision improved survival for patients with any VH, and chemotherapy improved survival for patients with renal VH. On subanalysis of CR by VH subtype, survival benefits for surgery were significant for adenocarcinoma, neuroendocrine, and squamous in a renal location and adenocarcinoma, neuroendocrine, sarcoma, and squamous in a ureteral location. Additionally, benefits of chemotherapy were significant for adenocarcinoma in a renal location and neuroendocrine in a ureteral location. CONCLUSION: Patients with upper tract VH are more likely to present at advanced stages and experience higher mortality rates when compared to pure UC. Generally, survival benefits are seen with either surgical excision or chemotherapy for renal VH and with surgical excision for ureteral VH, but mortality rates for these treatment modalities differ amongst specific subtypes.

Young age is associated with decreased recurrence for renal cell carcinoma.

INTRODUCTION: We aimed to examine stage-specific oncologic outcomes for young versus conventional-age patients with localized disease in a modern cohort. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database was queried for patients with T1-T2N0M0 kidney cancer from 1975-2016, including clear cell, papillary, and chromophobe renal cell carcinoma. Patients were stratified into ≤ 40 years-old or > 40 years-old cohorts and underwent definitive treatment via percutaneous ablation, partial nephrectomy, or radical nephrectomy. Primary outcome was cancer-specific survival. Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier analysis were performed. RESULTS: A total of 44,673 patients were identified with 41,812 patients in the conventional-age and 2,861 patients in the young cohort with mean ages of 62.1 and 34.7 years old, respectively. The young cohort had a higher proportion of T1a disease compared to the conventional-age cohort (65.2% vs. 58.6%) and a lower proportion of the cT1b (24.4% vs. 29.3%), cT2a (6.8% vs. 8.4%), and cT2b (3.6% vs. 3.7%) disease. Chromophobe histology was more prevalent in the younger population (10.5% vs. 6.6%). Nuclear grade 3 or 4 were more prominent in the conventional-age population (24.8% vs. 19.1%). Cancer-specific death was significantly higher in the conventional-age cohort (2.4% vs. 0.7%). Cox regression analysis demonstrated patients > 40 years old, increasing stage, and higher grade were at independently increased risk of cancer-specific death. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed significantly improved 5-year cancer-specific survival for the young versus conventional-age cohorts when sub-stratified by stage. CONCLUSION: When stratified by stage, young patients with localized kidney cancer experience improved cancer-specific survival.

Increasing rate of pathologic upgrading in low risk prostate cancer patients in the active surveillance era.

INTRODUCTION: Management of prostate cancer has seen an increasing predilection for active surveillance in low risk (LR) patients. We aimed to evaluate the rate of pathologic upgrading in patients with very low (VLR) or LR prostate cancer after prostatectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The National Cancer Database (NCDB) and the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Database were queried for patients diagnosed with Gleason 6 prostate cancer and prostate specific antigen (PSA) < 10 ng/mL from 2010 to 2016. All patients underwent 12-core biopsy and a subsequent prostatectomy for final pathologic staging. Our primary outcome was rate of pathologic upgrading over the study period. RESULTS: A total of 35,332 patients from the NCDB and 7,186 patients from the SEER database were collected. Patient population had an average age of about 59 years old and was over 80% white. Mean pre-biopsy PSA was higher for the upgraded cohorts in the NCDB and SEER populations (5.3 versus 4.9 and 5.5 versus 5.1 respectively, p < 0.001). Upgraded cohorts were more likely to have a higher percentage of positive cores at biopsy (p < 0.001). Multivariable analysis demonstrated that increasing age, increasing PSA and year of diagnosis were all predictors of upgrading (p < 0.05) in both databases. African American race was significantly associated with upgrading in the NCDB database only (p = 0.001). Over the studied time period, the rate of upgrading at prostatectomy increased from 41.2% to 56.7% in the NCDB population and from 41.9% to 45.4% in the SEER population. CONCLUSIONS: The rate of pathologic upgrading of VLR and LR prostate cancer at prostatectomy has been increasing in recent years. Increasing age, pre-biopsy PSA and an increasing percentage of positive cores at biopsy are predictors of this outcome. This may relate to improved patient selection for active surveillance and definitive treatment.

Robotic surgery for cT2 kidney cancer: analysis of the National Cancer Database.

Robotic surgery for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is increasingly adopted for cT1 disease, but its utilization for cT2 disease remains unexplored. We aimed to characterize the trend in robotic approach for cT2 RCC. The National Cancer Database was queried for patients who were diagnosed with cT2N0M0 RCC from 2010 to 2016 and underwent subsequent radical (RN) or partial (PN) nephrectomy. Analysis of treatment trends was performed and logistic regression (LR) undertaken for predictors of surgical approach. 21,258 patients met inclusion criteria for analysis; 1698 (8%) underwent a PN and 19,560 (92%) underwent RN. Use of robotics in PN increased 346% (12.3-42.6%) and 351% (6.2-21.8%) for RN during the studied time period. Robotic PN or RN was associated with shorter hospital stay compared to non-robotic approaches (p < 0.001). Academic institutions were more likely to perform a robotic procedure and the uninsured were less likely to receive robotic approach. There was no association between age, sex, race, or income and surgical approach. On LR, robotic approach was independently associated with academic institutions and a more recent year of diagnosis. There was no significant difference in the rate of positive margins, 30-day readmission, or 30/90-day mortality between approaches. Robotic PN and RN is becoming an increasingly popular approach in the treatment of cT2 RCC. Utilization of robotics is associated with academic institutions and results in a shorter hospital stay without significant differences rate of positive margins, readmission rates, or 30/90-day mortality.

Clinical characteristics of renal cell carcinoma in patients under the age of 40.

BACKGROUND: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) most commonly afflicts older patients while those 40 years old or younger represent an uncommon population. We aim to describe the tumor characteristics and treatment patterns for young kidney cancer patients utilizing the National Cancer Database. METHODS: The National Cancer Database Participant User File for RCC was queried from 2004 to 2016. Demographics and treatment trends were analyzed and compared between a young cohort, those aged 40 and younger vs. a conventional cohort, those older than 40. Pathology analyzed included clear cell, papillary, chromophobe, RCC not otherwise specified, and miscellaneous uncategorized. Subanalysis was performed for patients with localized disease and treatment type. RESULTS: Amongst the 514,879 patients diagnosed with RCC, 4.7% were ≤40 years old. RCC for individuals ≤40 has a higher proportion of female gender, non-Caucasian race, and chromophobe pathology, relative to the conventional cohort. Younger patients more often presented with cT1 disease with decreased rates of metastasis. Risk of 30-day readmission after surgery was similar between cohorts. For patients with cT1-2N0M0 disease, there was a decreasing rate of radical nephrectomy and increasing rate of partial nephrectomy; however, the conventional cohort had an increasing rate of percutaneous ablation while this remained stable in the younger cohort. CONCLUSION: Young RCC patients had a higher proportion of female gender, chromophobe histology, and favorable tumor characteristics. Partial nephrectomy has seen a dramatic increase in application regardless of age while percutaneous ablation increased only in the conventional cohort.

Contemporary analysis of epididymal tumors using a national database.

INTRODUCTION: Epididymal tumors are rare malignancies with sparse research available to guide recommendations. We sought to characterize malignant epididymal tumors in the United States using population level data. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End-Results database was queried for patients diagnosed with malignant epididymal tumors between 1975-2016. International classification of disease for oncology code C63.0 was used to identify population with disease of interest. Primary objective was to characterize patient demographics, disease characteristics, and management. Secondary objectives included overall and cancer-specific survival (CSS) utilizing Kaplan-Meier (KM) analysis. RESULTS: A total of 66 cases of malignant epididymal tumors were identified during the study period. The cohort was largely white (84.8%), with a mean age of diagnosis of 46.9 years old. The predominant histology consisted of rhabdomyosarcoma 26%, leiomyosarcoma 23%, liposarcoma 17%, adenocarcinoma 9%, and malignant fibrous histiocytoma 5%. During histopathological assessment, 21.1% of tumors were classified as high-grade while 71.2% exhibited sarcomatoid elements. Majority of patients presented with localized disease (68.2%), whereas regional (18.2%) and distant (13.2%) disease was less frequently discovered. All patients were diagnosed by surgical therapy consisting of radical epididymectomy (39.4%), partial epididymectomy (27.3%) or 'unknown surgery' (33.3%). Meanwhile, 15.2% and 34.8% received radiation and chemotherapy, respectively. KM analysis revealed an 84.9% CSS at 5-years. Over 60% of documented cases have arisen since 2000, with 3.0% of the cohort diagnosed in 2016, increased from 1.5% of the diagnoses in 1975. CONCLUSIONS: Malignant epididymal tumors are exceedingly rare and typically present with localized disease. Surgical excision is associated with an estimated 85% CSS at 5-years.