Cost Effectiveness of Treatment Sequences in Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The treatment landscape for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) has significantly evolved in recent years. Without direct comparator trials, factors such as cost effectiveness (CE) are important to guide decision-making. OBJECTIVE: To assess the CE of guideline-recommended approved first- and second-line treatment regimens. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A comprehensive Markov model was developed to analyze the CE of the five current National Comprehensive Cancer Network-recommended first-line therapies with appropriate second-line therapy for patient cohorts with International Metastatic RCC Database Consortium favorable and intermediate/poor risk. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Life years, quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), and total accumulated costs were estimated using a willingness-to-pay threshold of $150 000 per QALY. One-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: In patients with favorable risk, pembrolizumab + lenvatinib followed by cabozantinib added $32 935 in costs and yielded 0.28 QALYs, resulting in an incremental CE ratio (ICER) of $117 625 per QALY in comparison to pembrolizumab + axitinib followed by cabozantinib. In patients with intermediate/poor risk, nivolumab + ipilimumab followed by cabozantinib added $2252 in costs and yielded 0.60 QALYs compared to cabozantinib followed by nivolumab, yielding an ICER of $4184. Limitations include differences in median follow-up duration between treatments. CONCLUSIONS: Pembrolizumab + lenvatinib followed by cabozantinib, and pembrolizumab + axitinib followed by cabozantinib were cost-effective treatment sequences for patients with favorable-risk mRCC. Nivolumab +ipilimumab followed by cabozantinib was the most cost-effective treatment sequence for patients with intermediate-/poor-risk mRCC, dominating all preferred treatments. PATIENT SUMMARY: Because new treatments for kidney cancer have not been compared head to head, comparison of their cost and efficacy can help in making decisions about the best treatments to use first. Our model showed that patients with a favorable risk profile are most likely to benefit from pembrolizumab and lenvatinib or axitinib followed by cabozantinib, while patients with an intermediate or poor risk profile will probably benefit most from nivolumab and ipilimumab followed by cabozantinib.

Harnessing the Genomic Landscape of the Small Renal Mass to Guide Clinical Management.

CONTEXT: Small renal masses (SRMs; tumors <4 cm) encompass a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. Genomic profiling has the potential to improve risk stratification and personalize treatment selection. OBJECTIVE: Herein, we review the evidence regarding the utility, challenges, and potential implications of genomic profiling in the management of SRMs. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: Pertinent publications available on PubMed database pertaining to kidney cancer, tumor size, genomics, and clinical management were reviewed. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: Compared with larger tumors, SRMs range from benign to lethal, necessitating strategies for improved treatment selection. Recent advances in the molecular characterization of renal cell carcinoma have improved our understanding of the disease; however, utility of these tools for the management of SRMs is less clear. While intratumoral heterogeneity (ITH) reduces the accuracy and reliability of sequencing, relative genomic uniformity of SRMs somewhat lessens the impact of ITH. Therefore, renal mass biopsy of SRMs represents an appealing opportunity to evaluate how incorporation of molecular profiles may improve management strategies. CONCLUSIONS: Ongoing research into the genomic landscape of SRMs has advanced our understanding of the spectrum of disease aggressiveness and may hold promise in matching disease biology to treatment intensity. PATIENT SUMMARY: Small renal masses are a clinical challenge, as they range from benign to lethal. Genomic profiling may eventually improve treatment selection, but more research is needed.

Prostate MRI: a national survey of Urologist's attitudes and perceptions.

INTRODUCTION: The use of multi-parametric (MP) MRI to diagnose prostate cancer has been the subject of intense research, with many studies showing positive results. The purpose of our study is to better understand the accessibility, role, and perceived accuracy of MP-MRI in practice by surveying practicing urologists. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Surveys were sent to 7,400 practicing American Urological Association member physicians with a current email address. The survey asked demographic information and addressed access, accuracy, cost, and role of prostate MRI in clinical practice. RESULTS: Our survey elicited 276 responses. Respondents felt that limited access and prohibitive cost of MP-MRI limits its use, 72% and 59% respectively. Academic urologists ordered more MP-MRI studies per year than those in private practice (43.3% vs. 21.1%; p<0.001). Urologists who performed more than 30 prostatectomies a year were more likely to feel that an MP-MRI would change their surgical approach (37.5% vs. 19.6%, p-value=0.002). Only 25% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that MP-MRI should be used in active surveillance. For patients with negative biopsies and elevated PSA, 39% reported MP-MRI to be very useful. CONCLUSIONS: Our study found that MP-MRI use is most prominent among practitioners who are oncology fellowship-trained, practice at academic centers, and perform more than 30 prostatectomies per year. Limited access and prohibitive cost of MP-MRI may limit its utility in practice. Additionally, study participants perceive a lack of accuracy of MP-MRI, which is contrary to the recent literature.

Anatomic features of enhancing renal masses predict malignant and high-grade pathology: a preoperative nomogram using the RENAL Nephrometry score.

BACKGROUND: Counseling patients with enhancing renal mass currently occurs in the context of significant uncertainty regarding tumor pathology. OBJECTIVE: We evaluated whether radiographic features of renal masses could predict tumor pathology and developed a comprehensive nomogram to quantitate the likelihood of malignancy and high-grade pathology based on these features. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: We retrospectively queried Fox Chase Cancer Center's prospectively maintained database for consecutive renal masses where a Nephrometry score was available. INTERVENTION: All patients in the cohort underwent either partial or radical nephrectomy. MEASUREMENTS: The individual components of Nephrometry were compared with histology and grade of resected tumors. We used multiple logistic regression to develop nomograms predicting the malignancy of tumors and likelihood of high-grade disease among malignant tumors. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: Nephrometry score was available for 525 of 1750 renal masses. Nephrometry score correlated with both tumor grade (p < 0.0001) and histology (p < 0.0001), such that small endophytic nonhilar tumors were more likely to represent benign pathology. Conversely, large interpolar and hilar tumors more often represented high-grade cancers. The resulting nomogram from these data offers a useful tool for the preoperative prediction of tumor histology (area under the curve [AUC]: 0.76) and grade (AUC: 0.73). The model was subjected to out-of-sample cross-validation; however, lack of external validation is a limitation of the study. CONCLUSIONS: The current study is the first to objectify the relationship between tumor anatomy and pathology. Using the Nephrometry score, we developed a tool to quantitate the preoperative likelihood of malignant and high-grade pathology of an enhancing renal mass.