Race-specific prostate cancer outcomes in a cohort of low and favorable-intermediate risk patients who underwent external beam radiation therapy from 1990 to 2017.

BACKGROUND: Previous research exploring the role of race on prostate cancer (PCa) outcomes has demonstrated greater rates of disease progression and poorer overall survival for African American (AA) compared to Caucasian American (CA) men. The current study examines self-reported race as a predictor of long-term PCa outcomes in patients with low and favorable-intermediate risk disease treated with external beam radiation therapy (EBRT). METHODS: This retrospective cohort study examined patients who were consented to enrollment in the Center for Prostate Disease Research Multicenter National Database between January 01, 1990 and December 31, 2017. Men self-reporting as AA or CA who underwent EBRT for newly diagnosed National Comprehensive Cancer Network-defined low or favorable-intermediate risk PCa were included. Dependent study outcomes included: biochemical recurrence-free survival, (ii) distant metastasis-free survival, and (iii) overall survival. Each outcome was modeled as a time-to-event endpoint using race-stratified Kaplan-Meier estimation curves and multivariable Cox proportional hazards analysis. RESULTS: Of 840 men included in this study, 268 (32%) were AA and 572 (68%) were CA. The frequency of biochemical recurrence, distant metastasis, and deaths from any cause was 151 (18.7%), 29 (3.5%), and 333 (39.6%), respectively. AA men had a significantly younger median age at time of EBRT and slightly higher biopsy Gleason scores. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards analyses demonstrated no racial differences in any of the study endpoints. CONCLUSIONS: These findings reveal no racial disparity in PCa outcomes for AA compared to CA men, in a long-standing, longitudinal cohort of patients with comparable access to cancer care.

A prospective analysis of health-related quality of life in intermediate and high-risk prostate cancer patients managed with intensity modulated radiation therapy, with vs. without hormonal therapy.

INTRODUCTION: Combined radiotherapy and hormonal treatment are recommended for intermediate- and high-risk prostate cancer (CaP). This study compared the long-term effects on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of intermediate- and high-risk CaP patients managed with radiation therapy (RT) with vs. without hormone therapy (HT). METHODS: Patients with intermediate- and high-risk CaP enrolled in the Center for Prostate Disease Research diagnosed from 2007 to 2017 were included. EPIC and SF-36 questionnaires were completed and HRQoL scores were compared for patients receiving RT vs. RT + HT at baseline (pretreatment), 6, 12, 24, 36, 48, and 60 months after CaP diagnosis. Longitudinal patterns of change in HRQoL were modeled using linear regression models, adjusting for baseline HRQoL, age at CaP diagnosis, race, comorbidities, National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) risk stratum, time to treatment, and follow-up time. RESULTS: Of 164 patients, 93 (56.7%) received RT alone and 71 (43.3%) received RT + HT. Both groups reported comparable baseline HRQoL. Patients receiving RT+HT were more likely to be NCCN high risk as compared to those receiving only RT. The RT + HT patients experienced worse sexual function, hormonal function, and hormonal bother than those who only received RT; however, HRQoL recovered over time for the RT + HT group. No significant differences were observed between groups in urinary and bowel domains or SF-36 mental and physical scores. CONCLUSION: Combined RT + HT treatment was associated with temporary lower scores in sexual and hormonal HRQoL compared with RT only. Intermediate- and high-risk CaP patients should be counseled about the possible declines in HRQoL associated with HT.

Routine Prescription of Opioids for Post-Vasectomy Pain Control Associated with Persistent Use.

PURPOSE: The AUA (American Urological Association) Position Statement on opioid use recommends using opioids only when necessary. We sought to determine if routine prescribing of opioids is necessary for pain control after vasectomy, and if an association exists with persistent use. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the charts of patients who underwent vasectomy in clinic between April 2017 and March 2018. Patients were stratified into 2 groups, including those initially prescribed opioids and those not receiving opioid prescriptions at the time of vasectomy. The initial pain medication regimen depended on the standard prescription practice of each provider. Encounters with a medical provider for scrotal pain within 30 days, subsequent opioid prescriptions and new persistent opioid prescriptions between 90 and 180 days were compared between the 2 groups using the Fisher exact test. RESULTS: Between April 2017 and March 2018 a total of 228 patients underwent clinic vasectomy as performed by 8 urologists. At the time of vasectomy 102 patients received opioid prescriptions and 126 received no opioid prescriptions. There was no statistically significant difference between the opioid and nonopioid groups in encounters for scrotal pain (12.7% vs 18.4%, p = 0.279). The incidence of new persistent opioid use was 7.8% in the opioid cohort compared to 1.5% in the nonopioid cohort (p = 0.046). CONCLUSIONS: Opioids, which do not appear to be necessary in men who undergo vasectomy, were associated with persistent use in 7.8% of patients at 3 to 6 months. In the face of an opioid epidemic urologists should take action to limit over prescription of opioids after vasectomy.

Impact of Subsequent Biopsies on Comprehensive Health Related Quality of Life in Patients with and without Prostate Cancer.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to identify the effects of subsequent prostate needle biopsies after the baseline biopsy on health related quality of life with time. We compared men with and without prostate cancer, and men who did and did not undergo followup prostate needle biopsy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Included in analysis were patients enrolled in the Center for Prostate Disease Research Multicenter National Database between 2007 and 2015 who had low or favorable intermediate risk prostate cancer, were on active surveillance and underwent prostate needle biopsy for suspicion of prostate cancer. Patients completed the EPIC (Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite) and the RAND SF-36 (36-Item Short Form Health Survey) after baseline biopsy and at regular followup intervals. Mean health related quality of life was compared with time between patients who did and did not undergo subsequent prostate needle biopsies following baseline. RESULTS: Of the 637 patients included in study 129 (20.3%) with prostate cancer were on active surveillance and 508 (79.7%) were in the noncancer group. In the cancer and noncancer groups mean ± SD followup was 34.7 ± 16.9 and 31.6 ± 14.6 months, respectively. Of the patients with prostate cancer 54 (60.7%) underwent subsequent prostate needle biopsies compared with 114 (27.1%) without cancer. No significant impact on health related quality of life was observed in men who underwent subsequent prostate needle biopsies during a 5-year period. CONCLUSIONS: A subsequent prostate needle biopsy is required in most active surveillance protocols and in men with persistent suspicion of prostate cancer. Our analysis shows that subsequent prostate needle biopsies do not significantly impact health related quality of life.

Clinical Outcome of Retroperitoneal Lymph Node Dissection after Chemotherapy in Patients with Pure Embryonal Carcinoma in the Orchiectomy Specimen.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the pathologic findings and clinical outcome of patients with pure embryonal carcinoma (EC) of the testis who were diagnosed with testis cancer from January 1989 to January 2013 who underwent an orchiectomy, cisplatin-based chemotherapy and a postchemotherapy retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (PC-RPLND). METHODS: We compared those patients with 100% EC with those with mixed nonseminomatous germ cell tumor pathology who underwent a PC-RPLND. RESULTS: Of 1105 patients who underwent a PC-RPLND, 145 had pure EC. Twenty-six percent of patients presented with metastatic disease outside the retroperitoneum. Patients with mixed histologies tended to have worse International Germ Cell Cancer Collaborative Group risk compared to those with EC at orchiectomy (P = .037). Histology at PC-RPLND revealed fibrosis or necrosis in 76%, mature teratoma in 19% and viable cancer in 4%. Over one-third of the patients had a residual mass of <1 cm prior to RPLND; of whom 15% harbored mature teratoma in PC-RPLND histology. The Kaplan-Meier estimated probability of recurrence at 5 years of follow-up was 3.1% (95% CI 1.2%, 8.0%) for EC histology, 7.3% lower than mixed histology. For cancer-specific mortality, the Kaplan-Meier estimated probability at 5 years was 4.6% (95% CI 3.3%, 6.3%) and 1.7% (95% CI 0.4%, 6.8%) for mixed and pure EC histologies, respectively. CONCLUSION: Approximately 20% of patients with pure EC had teratoma at PC-RPLND. We have shown that those with a maximum node size of <1 cm should not be precluded from RPLND.

Second primary malignancies in renal cortical neoplasms: an updated evaluation from a single institution.

PURPOSE: To examine the incidence of secondary primary malignancies in patients with renal cortical neoplasms. METHODS: Between January 1989 and July 2010, 3647 patients underwent surgery at our institution for a renal cortical neoplasm and were followed through 2012. Occurrence of other malignancies was classified as antecedent, synchronous, or subsequent. All patients with antecedent malignancies (n = 498) and a randomly selected half of those with synchronous malignancies (n = 83) were excluded. The expected number of second primaries was calculated by multiplying Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program incidence rates of renal cortical neoplasms by person-years at risk within categories of age, sex, and year of diagnosis. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) was calculated as observed cancers divided by expected incidence of the cancer, with approximation to the exact Poisson test used to obtain confidence intervals (CI) and p values. RESULTS: Of 3066 patients with renal cortical neoplasms, 267 had a second primary cancer; the five most common in men were prostate, colorectal, bladder, lung, and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; the five most common in women were breast, colorectal, lung, endometrium, and thyroid. Men demonstrated higher than expected thyroid cancer rate (SIR 5.0; 95 % CI 1.83-10.88, p = 0.002), and women had higher than expected rates of stomach cancer (SIR 5.0; 95 % CI 1.61-11.67, p = 0.004) and thyroid cancer (SIR 4.62; 95 % CI 1.69-10.05, p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of certain types of second malignancies may be higher in patients after diagnosis of renal cortical neoplasms compared to the general population. These observations can inform clinical follow-up in kidney cancer survivorship and future research studies.

Erectile Function Recovery after Radical Prostatectomy in Men with High Risk Features.

PURPOSE: We describe the efficacy of radical prostatectomy to achieve complete primary tumor excision while preserving erectile function in a cohort of patients with high risk features in whom surgical resection was tailored according to clinical staging, biopsy data, preoperative imaging and intraoperative findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a retrospective review we identified 584 patients with high risk features (prostate specific antigen 20 ng/ml or greater, clinical stage T3 or greater, preoperative Gleason grade 8-10) who underwent radical prostatectomy between 2006 and 2012. The probability of neurovascular bundle preservation was estimated based on preoperative characteristics. Positive surgical margin rates and erectile function recovery were determined in patients who had some degree of neurovascular bundle preservation. RESULTS: The neurovascular bundles were resected bilaterally in 69 (12%) and unilaterally in 91 (16%) patients. The remaining patients had some degree of bilateral neurovascular bundle preservation. Preoperative features associated with a lower probability of neurovascular bundle preservation were primary biopsy Gleason grade 5 and clinical stage T3 disease. Among the patients with some degree of neurovascular bundle preservation 125 of 515 (24%) had a positive surgical margin, and 75 of 160 (47%) men with preoperatively functional erections and available erectile function followup had recovered erectile function within 2 years. CONCLUSIONS: High risk features should not be considered an indication for complete bilateral neurovascular bundle resection. Some degree of neurovascular bundle preservation can be done safely by high volume surgeons in the majority of these patients with an acceptable rate of positive surgical margins. Nearly half of high risk patients with functional erections preoperatively recover erectile function after radical prostatectomy.

Low yield of surveillance imaging after surgery for T1 kidney cancer.

PURPOSE: To examine the mode of relapse detection and subsequent treatment after partial or radical nephrectomy in patients with low-risk (pT1, N0, Nx) kidney cancer. METHODS: Retrospective study on 1404 patients treated with partial or radical nephrectomy for low-risk kidney cancer from the years 2000-2012. Scans for chest imaging (X-ray or CT) and abdominal imaging (CT, MRI, or ultrasound) are tabulated. For those patients with relapse, the site, mode of detection, and symptoms were recorded. RESULTS: Twenty-one patients relapsed with a median follow-up of 4.1 years for patients who did not relapse. In 17 (81 %) patients, relapse was detected by imaging alone, while 4 (19 %) patients presented with symptoms. Of the patients who relapsed by imaging, 13 (76 %) were treated immediately, while 4 (24 %) continued observation. During the first 3 years of follow-up, 5762 imaging studies were performed to detect 8 relapses, with 6 patients receiving immediate treatment. The median number of imaging studies per patient per year for the first 3 years was 1.7 (interquartile range 1.0, 2.3) including 30 % CT, 3 % MRI, 36 % X-ray, and 31 % ultrasounds. CONCLUSION: We found a low yield of surveillance imaging in the first 3 years for pT1 kidney cancer. Nearly 1000 imaging studies were performed to detect one relapse that required treatment. Further studies are needed to evaluate the clinical impact of imaging surveillance according to recent guidelines.

Ambulatory Extended Recovery: Safely Transitioning to Overnight Observation for Minimally Invasive Prostatectomy.

INTRODUCTION: We evaluated the safety and efficacy of a clinical pathway designed and implemented to transition inpatient minimally invasive radical prostatectomy to a procedure with overnight observation. METHODS: In April 2011 ambulatory extended recovery was implemented at our institution. This was a multidisciplinary program of preoperative teaching and postoperative care for patients undergoing minimally invasive radical prostatectomy. We compared the risk of requiring a more than 1-night hospital stay by patients treated with surgery the year before the program vs those treated after the program was initiated, adjusting for age, ASA® status and surgery type. We also examined the rates of readmission and urgent care visits within 48 hours, and 7 and 30 days before and after the program began. RESULTS: The proportion of patients who stayed longer than 1 night was 53% in the year before initiating the ambulatory extended recovery program vs 8% during the program, representing an adjusted absolute risk decrease of 45% (95% CI 39-50, p <0.0001). There was no important predictor of a greater than 1-night length of stay among ambulatory extended recovery patients. Rates of readmission and urgent care visits were slightly lower during the ambulatory extended recovery phase with no significant difference between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: The ambulatory extended recovery program successfully transitioned most patients to a 1-night hospital stay without resulting in an increased rate of readmission or urgent care visits.

Bladder biopsy of normal-appearing mucosa is not helpful in patients with unexplained positive cytology after nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer.

PURPOSE: Malignant voided cytology with normal endoscopic evaluation represents a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge in many patients with a history of nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer. Bladder biopsy is often advised but its efficacy is unclear. We evaluated the usefulness of bladder biopsy in patients with unexplained positive cytology and describe recurrence patterns in this unique patient subset. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From an institutional database we retrospectively identified patients with a history of nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer and surveillance cystoscopy from 2008 to 2012 who had malignant voided urine cytology but normal cystoscopy. Patients underwent systematic bladder biopsy or cystoscopic surveillance and were followed for recurrence and progression. RESULTS: Of 444 patients 343 were followed with surveillance only and 101 underwent a total of 118 biopsies of normal-appearing bladder mucosa. Three biopsies (2.5%) showed carcinoma in situ and none revealed invasive carcinoma. During the median 32-month followup recurrence developed in the bladder in 194 patients (44%), in the upper tract in 24 (5%) and in the prostatic urethra in 5 (1%) while 219 (49%) had no recurrence. A previous diagnosis of upper tract urothelial carcinoma and a history of bacillus Calmette-Guérin treatment were associated with an increased recurrence risk on multivariate analysis. Recurrence rates and patterns were similar in the biopsy and surveillance groups. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with malignant cytology despite normal cystoscopy have a high recurrence rate. Biopsy of normal-appearing bladder mucosa in this setting is rarely positive and does not alter the recurrence pattern.

Upper urinary tract abnormalities: a case of bilateral kidneys within a left-sided omphalocele.

Children with omphalocele, exstrophy, imperforate anus, and spinal defects complex present with the most severe form of birth defects in the exstrophy-epispadias spectrum. Prenatal diagnosis is difficult, but improved survival over the past several decades makes understanding the potential anatomic manifestations imperative for expeditious and appropriate surgical care. The upper urinary tract is often normal in children with omphalocele, exstrophy, imperforate anus, and spinal defects complex, but malposition of one of the kidneys has previously been reported. We present the first case of bilateral kidney herniation into the omphalocele sac.

Treatment efficacy of virtual reality distraction in the reduction of pain and anxiety during cystoscopy.

OBJECTIVE: Assessment of virtual reality (VR) distraction for alleviating pain and anxiety during flexible cystoscopy. Cystoscopy is a common ambulatory procedure performed in Urology and can be associated with moderate pain and anxiety. Sophisticated distraction techniques are not used with cystoscopy and VR has not been studied for this procedure. We designed a prospective, randomized, controlled trial assessing the efficacy of VR for alleviating pain and anxiety during flexible cystoscopy. METHODS: Adult men referred for cystoscopy were randomized into a control or VR group. Subjects were given preprocedure and postprocedure questionnaires addressing anxiety, pain, and time spent thinking about pain. Vitals signs and galvanic skin monitors were used as objective measures. The control group underwent routine cystoscopy and the VR group underwent cystoscopy with VR. Physicians answered a postprocedure questionnaire assessing the difficulty of the exam. All questionnaires used a visual analog score for assessment. RESULTS: 23 patients enrolled in the control group and 22 in the VR group. Mean scores and Student's t-test were employed to analyze the data. No data endpoints showed a statistically significant difference between the 2 groups. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded no benefit to VR distraction mitigating pain in male patients during cystoscopy.

Adult prostate sarcoma: the Memorial Sloan Kettering experience.

OBJECTIVE: To present our institutional experience with adult prostate sarcoma over 30 years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed 38 cases of adult prostate sarcoma diagnosed and treated at our institution between 1982 and 2012. Univariate Cox proportional hazards regression was used to determine if there was an association between specific disease characteristics (tumor size, histology, American Joint Committee on Cancer stage, and metastasis at diagnosis) and cancer-specific survival (CSS). RESULTS: A total of 38 patients were included, with a median age of 50 years (range, 17-73 years). Most men presented with lower urinary tract symptoms (45%), hematuria (24%), or acute urinary retention (21%). Diagnosis was established with prostate needle biopsy (68%) or transurethral resection of the prostate (18%). The predominant histologic subtypes were leiomyosarcoma (13 cases, 34%) and rhabdomyosarcoma (12 cases, 32%). Rhabdomyosarcoma was associated with poorer CSS (hazard ratio, 3.00; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.13-7.92; P = .027) compared with leiomyosarcoma. We did not observe a significant relationship between tumor size and CSS. Overall, median CSS was 2.9 years (95% CI, 1.5-5.4), with 7.7 years for clinically localized disease (95% CI 2.5; upper bound not reached) and 1.5 years for metastatic disease (95% CI 1.1, 2.7). CONCLUSION: Adult prostate sarcoma has a poor prognosis, especially in cases of metastatic disease at the time of diagnosis. Surgery remains the standard of care, but it provides limited benefit to those with metastatic disease or as a consolidation therapy after partial response to systemic therapy.

Impact of routine use of surgical drains on incidence of complications with robot-assisted radical prostatectomy.

PURPOSE: To assess the impact of eliminating routine drain placement in patients undergoing robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) and pelvic lymph node dissection (PLND) on the risk of postoperative complications. PATIENTS AND METHODS: An experienced single surgeon performed RALP on 651 consecutive patients at our institution from 2008 to 2012. Before August 2011, RALP with or without PLND included a routine peritoneal drain placed during surgery. Thereafter, routine intraoperative placement of drains was omitted, except for intraoperatively noted anastomotic leakage. We used multivariable logistic regression to compare complication rates between study periods and the actual drain placement status after adjusting for standard prespecified covariates. RESULTS: Most patients (92%) did not have ≥grade 2 complications after surgery and only two patients (0.3%) experienced a grade 4 complication. The absolute adjusted risk of a grade 2-5 complication was 0.9% greater among those treated before August 2011 (95% confidence interval [CI] -3.3%-5.1%; p=0.7), while absolute adjusted risk of a grade 3-5 complication was 2.8% less (-2.8%; 95% CI-5.3%-0.1%; p=0.061). RESULTS based on drain status were similar. CONCLUSIONS: Routine peritoneal drain placement following RALP with PLND did not confer a significant advantage in terms of postoperative complications. Further data are necessary to confirm that it is safe to omit drains in most patients.

Impact of race in using PSA velocity to predict for prostate cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether race is a significant factor in the ability of prostate-specific antigen velocity (PSAV) for predicting high-grade prostate cancer (HGPC). METHODS: Records of men who underwent prostate biopsy between January 2003 and December 2007 were retrospectively reviewed to collect demographic data, self-reported race, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) data, and pathology results. PSAV was calculated using linear regression. Subjects were stratified by the presence or absence of HGPC. Median PSA and PSAV values were compared within each racial group using receiver operating characteristic analysis and Student t test. RESULTS: Static PSA was significantly higher in Caucasian men with HGPC (4.81 vs. 8.3 ng/mL, p = 0.0000001) while PSAV was also higher in men with HGPC (0.639 vs. 1.15 ng/mL/yr, p = 0.081). Static PSA in Asians did not perform well in predicting HGPC (5.3 vs. 9.42 ng/mL, p = 0.11), but fared much better than PSAV (0.51 vs. 0.93 ng/mL/yr, p = 0.27). PSA in African Americans did not significantly predict HGPC (6.27 vs. 7.7 ng/mL, p = 0.474), but PSAV showed a stronger trend toward significance (0.615 vs. 1.54 ng/mL/yr, p = 0.068). CONCLUSIONS: PSAV may complement static PSA in African Americans and help identify early stage aggressive cancers.

Incidence and clinical significance of arterial injury in varicocele repair.

OBJECTIVE: • This study was performed to histologically determine the rate of arterial injury in varicocele ligation surgery and to determine the clinical significance of these arterial injuries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: • 41 men who underwent varicocele ligation surgery, and had segments of each ligated vessel examined histologically. • The patients were followed prospectively to determine the effect of arterial injury on surgical results and clinical complications. RESULTS: • Arterial ligation was identified in 6 of 41 patients (12%), and in 7 of 132 specimens (5%), which is higher than previous reports. • Arterial injury was not associated with testicular atrophy and there was no apparent effect of arterial injury on surgical outcome. CONCLUSION: • The rate of arterial injury during varicocele repair is higher than previously reported, but the clinical significance of these injuries appears to be limited.

Primary adenocarcinoma of the rete testis: improved staging accuracy with CT-PET.

A case of adenocarcinoma of the rete testis in a 54-year-old man is presented. Most such patients harbor metastatic disease, even in clinically localized presentations. CT-PET may provide improved diagnostic sensitivity over conventional CT in this setting.

Regression of metastatic seminoma in a patient referred for carcinoma of unknown primary origin.

BACKGROUND: A 63-year-old man presented to an emergency department with abdominal and back pain. A 5 x 3 x 2 cm para-aortic mass was found adjacent to the left kidney, but the location of the primary tumor could not be identified. He was referred to a tertiary center with a diagnosis of retroperitoneal carcinoma of unknown primary origin. Atrophy of the left testicle was noted. Review of the biopsy material obtained at the first presentation showed histology characteristic of seminoma, and imaging revealed the presence of small intratesticular lesions. Repeat CT showed complete resolution of the metastatic para-aortic mass. The patient underwent left orchiectomy and adjuvant radiation therapy, and showed no signs of disease 6 months later. INVESTIGATIONS: CT of the chest, abdomen and pelvis, measurement of serum tumor markers, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, colonoscopy, PET-CT and percutaneous needle biopsy of the para-aortic mass at the first presentation; physical examination, review of biopsy specimen with immunohistochemical staining for tumor markers, testicular ultrasonography and repeat CT of the chest, abdomen and pelvis at the second presentation. DIAGNOSIS: Metastatic seminoma with spontaneous regression of the metastatic lesion. MANAGEMENT: Radical orchiectomy and adjuvant radiation therapy.