Reducing last-minute cancellations of elective urological surgery-effectiveness of specialist nurse preoperative assessment.

Last-minute cancellations in urological surgery are a global issue, resulting in the wastage of resources and delays to patient care. In addition to non-cessation of anticoagulants and inadequately treated medical comorbidities, untreated urinary tract infections are a significant cause of last-minute cancellations. This study aimed to ascertain whether the introduction of a specialist nurse clinic resulted in a reduction of last-minute cancellations of elective urological surgery as part of our elective recovery plan following the Coronavirus disease 2019, the contagious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 or SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. A specialist urology nurse-led clinic was introduced to review urine culture results preoperatively. Specialist nurses contacted patients with positive urine cultures and their general practitioners by telephone and email to ensure a minimum of 2 days of 'lead-in' antibiotics were given prior to surgery. Patients unfit for surgery were postponed and optimized, and vacant slots were backfilled. A new guideline was created to improve the timing and structure of the generic preassessment. Between 1 January 2021 and 30 June 2021, a mean of 40 cases was booked each month, with average cancellations rates of 9.57/40 (23.92%). After implementing changes on 1 July 2021, cancellations fell to 4/124 (3%) for the month. On re-audit, there was a sustained and statistically significant reduction in cancellation rates: between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2021 cancellations averaged 4.2/97.5 (4.3%, P < .001). Two to nine (2%-16%) patients were started on antibiotics each month, while another zero to two (0%-2%) were contacted for other reasons. The implementation of a specialist urology nurse-led preassessment clinic resulted in a sustained reduction in cancellations of last-minute elective urological procedures.

Paraureteric space post-ureteric re-implantation: a rare cause of small bowel obstruction.

A female patient in her 80s presented with a 2-day history of abdominal pain and absolute constipation, having previously undergone a robotic left distal ureterectomy with ureteric re-implantation. CT revealed a closed-loop small bowel obstruction with transition point adjacent to the left ureter and resultant upstream hydronephrosis. An emergency laparotomy revealed small bowel herniation into a paraureteric space created by her previous surgery and defined by the distal ureter medially, the common iliac vessels laterally and the mobilised bladder dome anteriorly. The viable small bowel was reduced, and the space was eliminated by omental flap transposition after omentoplasty. The patient made a full recovery. Preoperative diagnosis of such an unusual cause of internal herniation can be challenging. This very rarely reported case raises awareness of the condition and proposes a treatment strategy.

Prostate cancer metastasis mimicking a primary urothelial carcinoma of the bladder.

We report on a 79-year-old male patient who presented with asymptomatic elevation of prostate-specific antigen and a concurrent papillary lesion, which raised the suspicion of synchronous bladder and prostatic malignancies. He underwent a trans-perineal prostate biopsy as well as transurethral resection of bladder tumour, which revealed a Gleason 9 adenocarcinoma of prostatic origin. While synchronous bladder and prostate cancer is a possibility, differential diagnosis in a patient presenting with lesions of the bladder neck should include advanced prostate cancer.

Developing a Diagnostic Multivariable Prediction Model for Urinary Tract Cancer in Patients Referred with Haematuria: Results from the IDENTIFY Collaborative Study.

BACKGROUND: Patient factors associated with urinary tract cancer can be used to risk stratify patients referred with haematuria, prioritising those with a higher risk of cancer for prompt investigation. OBJECTIVE: To develop a prediction model for urinary tract cancer in patients referred with haematuria. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A prospective observational study was conducted in 10 282 patients from 110 hospitals across 26 countries, aged ≥16 yr and referred to secondary care with haematuria. Patients with a known or previous urological malignancy were excluded. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The primary outcomes were the presence or absence of urinary tract cancer (bladder cancer, upper tract urothelial cancer [UTUC], and renal cancer). Mixed-effect multivariable logistic regression was performed with site and country as random effects and clinically important patient-level candidate predictors, chosen a priori, as fixed effects. Predictors were selected primarily using clinical reasoning, in addition to backward stepwise selection. Calibration and discrimination were calculated, and bootstrap validation was performed to calculate optimism. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: The unadjusted prevalence was 17.2% (n = 1763) for bladder cancer, 1.20% (n = 123) for UTUC, and 1.00% (n = 103) for renal cancer. The final model included predictors of increased risk (visible haematuria, age, smoking history, male sex, and family history) and reduced risk (previous haematuria investigations, urinary tract infection, dysuria/suprapubic pain, anticoagulation, catheter use, and previous pelvic radiotherapy). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the final model was 0.86 (95% confidence interval 0.85-0.87). The model is limited to patients without previous urological malignancy. CONCLUSIONS: This cancer prediction model is the first to consider established and novel urinary tract cancer diagnostic markers. It can be used in secondary care for risk stratifying patients and aid the clinician's decision-making process in prioritising patients for investigation. PATIENT SUMMARY: We have developed a tool that uses a person's characteristics to determine the risk of cancer if that person develops blood in the urine (haematuria). This can be used to help prioritise patients for further investigation.

Spontaneous ureteric rupture due to high pressure chronic retention.

Spontaneous ureteric rupture is a rare phenomenon which can be traumatic or non-traumatic that may arise from ureteric obstruction, trauma, mucosal inflammation from urolithiasis, connective tissue disease or retroperitoneal fibrosis. High pressure chronic retention is characterised by noctural enuresis, a tense palpable bladder, hypertension, progressive renal impairment, bilateral hydronephrosis and hydroureter on imaging. Obstructive urological symptoms are typically absent in uncomplicated cases. We report the case of a 69-year-old male who presented with high pressure chronic retention and spontaneous ureteric rupture demonstrated on a noncontrast CT. This patient was managed with a urethral catheter on free drainage and a retrograde ureteric stent. The patient's condition improved, and the stent was removed after a uretero-pyeloscopy which revealed no extravasation. He later underwent a successful transurethral resection of the prostate.

The IDENTIFY study: the investigation and detection of urological neoplasia in patients referred with suspected urinary tract cancer - a multicentre observational study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the contemporary prevalence of urinary tract cancer (bladder cancer, upper tract urothelial cancer [UTUC] and renal cancer) in patients referred to secondary care with haematuria, adjusted for established patient risk markers and geographical variation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was an international multicentre prospective observational study. We included patients aged ≥16 years, referred to secondary care with suspected urinary tract cancer. Patients with a known or previous urological malignancy were excluded. We estimated the prevalence of bladder cancer, UTUC, renal cancer and prostate cancer; stratified by age, type of haematuria, sex, and smoking. We used a multivariable mixed-effects logistic regression to adjust cancer prevalence for age, type of haematuria, sex, smoking, hospitals, and countries. RESULTS: Of the 11 059 patients assessed for eligibility, 10 896 were included from 110 hospitals across 26 countries. The overall adjusted cancer prevalence (n = 2257) was 28.2% (95% confidence interval [CI] 22.3-34.1), bladder cancer (n = 1951) 24.7% (95% CI 19.1-30.2), UTUC (n = 128) 1.14% (95% CI 0.77-1.52), renal cancer (n = 107) 1.05% (95% CI 0.80-1.29), and prostate cancer (n = 124) 1.75% (95% CI 1.32-2.18). The odds ratios for patient risk markers in the model for all cancers were: age 1.04 (95% CI 1.03-1.05; P < 0.001), visible haematuria 3.47 (95% CI 2.90-4.15; P < 0.001), male sex 1.30 (95% CI 1.14-1.50; P < 0.001), and smoking 2.70 (95% CI 2.30-3.18; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: A better understanding of cancer prevalence across an international population is required to inform clinical guidelines. We are the first to report urinary tract cancer prevalence across an international population in patients referred to secondary care, adjusted for patient risk markers and geographical variation. Bladder cancer was the most prevalent disease. Visible haematuria was the strongest predictor for urinary tract cancer.

Inguinal hernia causing extrinsic compression of bilateral ureters leading to chronic obstructive uropathy.

Ureteral inguinal hernias are a well-documented cause of obstructive uropathy with ureteric involvement in the hernia sac. In this unique case, the left-sided inguinal hernia causes extrinsic compression of bilateral ureters outside of the hernia sac leading to chronic obstructive uropathy, which is demonstrated on non-contrast CT and cystogram. This patient was managed with nephrostomy and subsequently antegrade stenting with nephrostomy removal. Prior to nephrostomy removal, nephrostogram demonstrated tapering of the left ureter in the pelvis. The patient's renal function continues to improve and is awaiting repair if his inguinal hernia after which he will have his ureteric stent removed.

Isolated Red Patches Seen During Endoscopic Surveillance of Bladder Cancer: Incidence of Malignancy and When Should We Biopsy?

OBJECTIVE: To establish whether the regular biopsy of red patches (RPs) seen during endoscopic surveillance for bladder cancer is worthwhile and determine a suitable time frame for repeat biopsy of prior histologically benign persistent RPs in patients on endoscopic surveillance for bladder cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Four thousand eight hundred five flexible cystoscopy (FC) reports over a 12-month period were retrospectively reviewed at a United Kingdom tertiary teaching hospital and those undergoing cystoscopic surveillance for bladder cancer and found to have solitary RPs at FC were included in the study. A proportion of these cases had biopsies taken for histopathologic analysis. RESULTS: Two hundred forty-one FC performed on 183 patients on endoscopic surveillance for bladder cancer had RPs and 120 (49.8%) of them had previous intravesical Bacillus Calmette-Guerin therapy. Eighty-five patients (35.3%) underwent biopsy of the RP. Malignancy was found in 20 biopsies (23.5%), of which, 11 out of 20 (55%) were carcinoma in-situ. Sixteen of these recurrences were biopsied previously, of which 11 (68.8%) were benign at last biopsy, 6 of which were in the last 12 months. The remaining four recurrences had no previous biopsy. No cases of malignancy were identified in patients with low-risk bladder cancer. CONCLUSION: We recommend the biopsy of all RPs found during endoscopic surveillance of patients with intermediate-/high-risk bladder cancer due to the significant incidence of malignant recurrence identified, particularly if no biopsy has been performed within the previous 12 months. This is independent of previous biopsy histology.

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour of the urinary bladder managed with partial cystectomy: a case report & literature review.

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour (IMT) is a rare neoplasm which can affect many different organs throughout the body. We report the case of a 62-year old female presenting with visible haematuria found to have IMT of the urinary bladder exhibiting anaplastic lymphoma kinase-1 gene rearrangement, initially managed with local resection and then definitively with partial cystectomy.

Collecting Duct Carcinoma With Cardiac Metastases: A Case Report & Literature Review.

Collecting duct carcinoma (CDC), is a rare and aggressive form of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounting for around 1% of all renal malignancy. It affects younger patients and is associated with rapid progression, distant spread and poor prognosis. Cardiac metastases from all types of RCC, without involvement of the inferior vena cava are very rare. We present the case of a 54 year old man with a history of CDC, who presents with collapse and ventricular tachycardia secondary to multifocal cardiac metastases. We are not aware of any other reports in the literature of CDC and cardiac metastases.

Urologist led one-stop testicular clinic: the UK 'gold standard'.

Prompt diagnosis and early treatment for testicular cancer is vital. To help with this a one-stop, urologist run, testicular clinic with testicular ultrasound scanning as an integral part of the clinic format was introduced to investigate patients in an efficient and timely manner. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility and efficiency of running a one-stop testicular clinic. A prospectively collected electronic database of all patients attending a one-stop testicular clinic at a busy university hospital was interrogated over a 6-year period. Only new referral males, above the age of 15 years old were included. Case notes were reviewed retrospectively. A total of 1757 patients were found with a median age of 36. 6.3 % had a suspicious ultrasound scan and overall 5.6 % were found to have malignancy histologically. In addition a significant proportion of men with a history of testicular maldescent went on to develop testicular cancer (p < 0.01). Median time from referral to clinic and clinic to orchidectomy for suspected testicular cancers was 9 and 5 days respectively (95 % CI). Some of the benefits of a urologist run one-stop testicular clinic include: timely diagnosis and treatment, early reassurance with normal investigations, the discovery of clinically unsuspecting malignancy and the increase in teaching opportunities. These collective benefits must improve patient experience and benefit the department as a whole. A urologist led one-stop testicular clinic should be regarded as the gold standard.

Non-muscle invasive transitional cell carcinoma of the distal ureter and bladder with lung metastasis: A case report and literature review.

INTRODUCTION: Non-muscle invasive transtitional cell carcinoma (TCC) with metastases is exceedingly rare. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We report the case of a 78-year old man with an incidental finding of a non-muscle invasive TCC of the left distal ureter during treatment for Duke's B Colon cancer. Following laparoscopic nephro-ureterectomy (LNU) he had two further superficial recurrences in the bladder over a 14-month period which underwent transurethral resection (TUR). On surveillance imaging for his colorectal cancer follow-up a lung nodule was detected and video-assisted thoracic surgical (VATS) resection of the lesion showed it to be TCC in origin. He was referred to oncology for chemotherapy and remains clinically well. DISCUSSION: A Literature search found only three other such cases and the ureteric TCC is the most likely source of the metastasis. CONCLUSION: This occurrence is exceedingly rare.

Unruptured Pseudoaneurysm of the cystic artery associated with acute calculus cholecystitis.

Cystic artery pseudoaneurysm (CAP) is a very rare complication of acute cholecystitis. We present the unruptured cystic artery pseudoaneurysm of an oedematous, thick-walled gallbladder in a 71-year old gentleman admitted with acute calculus cholecystitis. This was managed by radiological microcoil embolisation, percutaneous drainage of pericholic fluid and conservative treatment with antibiotics.