Patterns of relapse and treatment outcome after active surveillance or adjuvant carboplatin for stage I seminoma: a retrospective study of the Spanish Germ Cell Cancer Group.

PURPOSE: Active surveillance (AS) and adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) with carboplatin are valid alternatives for managing stage I seminoma, and most relapses can be cured with cisplatin-based chemotherapy. However, some reports suggest that AC may modify the classical pattern of recurrences. METHODS: We analyzed all relapses observed in a series of 879 patients with stage I seminoma included in 4 consecutive studies of the Spanish Germ Cell Cancer Group. After a median follow-up of 67 months, recurrences were detected in 56/467 (12%) low-risk cases on AS and 13/412 (3%) high-risk cases after AC (p < 0.001). The objective was to describe clinical features, treatment and outcome. Univariate comparisons were performed between both groups. RESULTS: No significant differences were found between relapses on AS and those after AC in terms of time to relapse (13 vs 17 months), size (26 vs 27 mm), location (retroperitoneum in 88% vs 85%), and method of detection (computed tomography in 77% vs 69%). Treatment consisted of chemotherapy (etoposide + cisplatin ± bleomycin) in 89% and 92%, respectively. Late relapses (after > 3 years) were seen in 11% vs 7.7% (p = NS) and second or successive recurrences in 1.8 vs 23% (p < 0.05). With a median follow-up of 130 moths, two patients died of seminoma-unrelated causes (AS group) and the rest are alive and disease-free. CONCLUSION: In the setting of a risk-adapted treatment of stage I seminoma, the administration of two courses of AC in patients with tumor size > 4 cm and/or rete testis invasion is associated with a higher incidence of second recurrences but does not significantly modify the pattern of relapses or their outcome.

Incidence and clinical pattern of contralateral synchronous and metachronous germ cell testicular cancer.

BACKGROUND: Incidence of a second testicular tumor is higher in patients diagnosed with testicular cancer than in the general population. As incidence of unilateral germ cell cancer is increasing worldwide and most of these patients are cured, a growing number of patients at risk of developing a contralateral testis cancer is expected. OBJECTIVE: To analyze clinical and histological characteristics, as well as the absolute and cumulative incidence of a second testicular cancer in a cohort of 3,834 patients diagnosed with germ cell testicular cancer between I/1994 and I/2018 in 18 referral hospitals of the Spanish Germ Cell Cancer Group. METHODS: Patients were treated according to stage and year of diagnoses. Contralateral testis biopsy was not routinely performed, according to European Association of Urology rules. Follow-up of the contra lateral testis consists of a physical exam only and an annual optional testicular ultrasound for 10 years. RESULTS: Median age of the patients included was 32 years (18-82). With a median follow-up of 61 months (0-240), 67/3,834 patients (1.74%) were diagnosed with a second testicular tumor. The second testicular tumor was synchronic (diagnosed within 6 months of the first orchiectomy) in 19 patients, and metachronous in 48. Pathology of the second tumor was reported as a seminomatous testis tumor in 47 patients and a nonseminomatous cancer in 20. Cumulative incidence of contralateral testicular cancer was 2% at 5 years, and 4% (IC 95% 3%-5%) at 14 years. Younger age was a risk factor for developing a second testicular tumor (P = 0.006), whereas chemotherapy reduced the risk for a metachronous testicular cancer (P = 0.046). Within our cohort, 6 families with testicular cancer aggregation (more than 2 tumors in the same family) were identified. CONCLUSIONS: Incidence of second testicular neoplasm in this cohort of 3,834 patients was similar to that which has been reported in other countries. Metachronous tumors and seminomas are more common. Follow-up of the contralateral testis is mandatory, as well as adequate information for patients to prevent a second neoplasm if feasible, and to detect and treat it as soon as possible.

Population-based risk assessment of second primary cancers following a first head and neck cancer: patterns of association and difficulties of its analysis.

PURPOSE: The diagnosis of a second primary cancer (SPC) is a major concern in the follow-up of survivors of a primary head and neck cancer (HNC), but the anatomic subsites in the head and neck area are close, making it difficult to distinguish a SPC of a recurrence and therefore register it correctly. METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study using data from two population-based cancer registries in Catalonia, Spain: the Tarragona Cancer Registry and the Girona Cancer Registry. All patients diagnosed with HNC during the period 1994-2013 were registered and followed-up to collect cases of SPC. We analysed the standardized incidence ratio (SIR) and the excess absolute risk (EAR) to determine the risk of second malignancies following a prior HNC. RESULTS: 923 SPC were found in a cohort of 5646 patients diagnosed of a first head and neck cancer. Men had an increased risk of a SPC with a SIR of 2.22 and an EAR of 216.76. Women also had an increased risk with a SIR of 2.02 and an EAR of 95.70. We show the risk for different tumour sites and discuss the difficulties of the analysis. CONCLUSION: The risks of a SPC following a prior HNC in Tarragona and Girona are similar to those previously found in other similar cohorts. It would appear to be advisable to make a revision of the international rules of classification of multiple tumours, grouping the sites of head and neck area with new aetiological criteria to better determine and interpret the risks of SPC obtained in these studies.

Treatment and Outcome of Patients with Stage IS Testicular Cancer: A Retrospective Study from the Spanish Germ Cell Cancer Group.

PURPOSE: Stage IS testicular cancer is defined by the persistence of elevated serum tumor markers, including α-fetoprotein and/or ß-human chorionic gonadotropin, after orchiectomy without radiological evidence of metastatic disease. Current treatment recommendations include cisplatin based chemotherapy up front but the recommendations are based on limited single center series. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed clinical and pathological characteristics, and long-term outcomes in 110 patients uniformly treated with primary chemotherapy between 1994 and 2016. The primary objective was to evaluate long-term disease-free survival. We also explored factors associated with the need for additional treatment. RESULTS: The elevated prechemotherapy tumor markers were α-fetoprotein in 48% of cases, ß-human chorionic gonadotropin in 14%, and α-fetoprotein and ß-human chorionic gonadotropin in 38%. Median α-fetoprotein and ß-human chorionic gonadotropin values were 71 ng/ml and 80 mIU/ml, respectively. The IGCCCG (International Germ Cell Cancer Collaborative Group) prognostic classification was good in 94% of cases. Mixed nonseminomatous germ cell tumor was found in 78% of cases. Of the patients 103 achieved a complete response to chemotherapy. In 6 patients radiological signs of progressive disease developed during chemotherapy, while 8 experienced relapse after an initial complete response. At a median followup of 108 months 108 patients were alive and disease-free. Five and 10-year disease-free survival rates were 87% and 85%, respectively. The predominance of embryonal carcinoma in the primary tumor was the only factor associated with the probability of needing additional therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Stage IS testicular cancer is more commonly associated with elevated α-fetoprotein, an IGCCCG good prognosis and mixed nonseminomatous germ cell tumor. Treatment with cisplatin based chemotherapy leads to cure in most cases. However, a proportion of patients require the integration of additional therapies, including more frequently when embryonal carcinoma is not predominant.

Germline promoter hypermethylation in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes is not present in hereditary breast cancer patients.

PURPOSE: Germline promoter hypermethylation of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes is an alternative event of gene silencing that has not been widely investigated in hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) syndrome. METHODS: We analyzed germline BRCA promoter hypermethylation in HBOC patients with and without BRCA mutations and control subjects, using a recently developed BRCA methylation-specific multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MS-MLPA) assay. RESULTS: Neither the patients tested nor the control subjects showed germline hypermethylation of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 promoter regions analyzed. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the results achieved at somatic levels by other researchers, these were not confirmed in our study at the germline level. Our results show the need to establish more predictive CpG sites in the BRCA promoter regions to optimize the MS-MLPA assay for the detection of germline hypermethylation as an effective pre-screening tool for whole-BRCA genetic analysis in HBOC, because we can not rule out the existence of germline promoter hypermethylation in BRCA.

The peritumoural adipose tissue microenvironment and cancer. The roles of fatty acid binding protein 4 and fatty acid binding protein 5.

The adipose tissue microenvironment plays a key role in tumour initiation and progression because it provides fatty acids and adipokines to tumour cells. The fatty acid-binding protein (FABP) family is a group of small proteins that act as intracellular fatty acid transporters. Adipose-derived FABPs include FABP4 and FABP5. Both have an important role in lipid-related metabolic processes and overexpressed in many cancers, such as breast, prostate, colorectal and ovarian. Moreover, their expression in peritumoural adipose tissue is deregulated, and their circulating levels are upregulated in some tumours. In this review, we discuss the role of the peritumoural adipose tissue and the related adipokines FABP4 and FABP5 in cancer initiation and progression and the possible pathways implicated in these processes.

SEOM clinical guidelines for the management of germ cell testicular cancer (2016).

Testicular cancer represents the most common malignancy in males aged 15-34 years and is considered a model of curable neoplasm. Maintaining success, reducing treatment burden, and focusing on survivorship are then key objectives. Inguinal orchiectomy is the first recommended maneuver that has both diagnostic and therapeutic aims. Most patients are diagnosed with stage I disease (confined to the testicle). Close surveillance and selective, short-course adjuvant chemotherapy are accepted alternatives for these cases. In patients with more advanced disease (stages II and III), 3-4 courses of cisplatin-based chemotherapy (according to IGCCCG risk classification) followed by the judicious surgical removal of residual masses represent the cornerstone of therapy. Poor-risk patients and those failing a first-line therapy should be referred to specialized tertiary centers. Paclitaxel-based conventional chemotherapy and high-dose chemotherapy plus autologous hematopoietic support can cure a proportion of patients with relapsing or refractory disease.

HDL-c levels predict the presence of pleural effusion and the clinical outcome of community-acquired pneumonia.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate if HDL cholesterol (HDL-c) could be a biomarker of the degree of severity according to prognostic prediction scores in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) or the development of clinical complications such as pleural effusion. METHODS: We included in a retrospective study 107 patients admitted to the hospital that fulfilled diagnostic criteria for CAP between the 30th October 2011 and 1st September 2012. HDL-c levels at admission, CAP prognosis scores (PSI and CURB65) and clinical outcomes were recorded for the study. RESULTS: Basal HDL-c levels were not statistically different according to prognostics scores neither PSI nor CURB-65. Significantly lower levels of HDL-c were also associated to the development of septic shock and admission to the intensive care unit. HDL-c were inversely correlated with acute phase reactants CRP (r = -0.585, P < 0.001), ESR (r = -0.477, P < 0.001), and leukocytes cell count (r = -0.254, P < 0.009). Patients with pleural effusion showed significant lower levels of HDL-c [28.9 (15.5) mg/dl vs. 44.6 (21.1) mg/dl]; P = 0.007. HDL-c is a good predictor of the presence of pleural effusion in multivariate analyses and using ROC analyses [AUC = 0.712 (0.591-0.834), P = 0.006]. HDL-c levels of 10 mg/dl showed a sensitivity of 97.6 % and a specificity of 82.4 % for the presence of pleural effusion. CONCLUSION: Monitoring HDL-c in CAP is an useful serum marker of acute phase response, clinical outcome and the presence of pleural effusion.

Prognostic factors for relapse in stage I seminoma: a new nomogram derived from three consecutive, risk-adapted studies from the Spanish Germ Cell Cancer Group (SGCCG).

BACKGROUND: We aimed to analyze prognostic factors for relapse in stage I seminoma managed by either active surveillance or adjuvant chemotherapy, and to describe the long-term patterns of recurrence in both groups. PATIENTS AND METHODS: From 1994 to 2008, 744 patients were included in three consecutive, prospective risk-adapted studies by the Spanish Germ Cell Cancer Group. Low-risk patients were managed by surveillance and high-risk patients were given two courses of adjuvant carboplatin. Relapses were treated mainly with chemotherapy. Patient age, tumor size, histological variant, pT staging, rete testis invasion, and preoperative serum BHCG levels were assessed for prediction of disease-free survival (DFS). RESULTS: After a median follow-up of 80 months, 63 patients (11.1%) have relapsed: 51/396 (14.8%) on surveillance and 12/348 (3.2%) following adjuvant carboplatin. Actuarial overall 5-year DFS was 92.3% (88.3% for surveillance versus 96.8% for chemotherapy, P = 0.0001). Median time to relapse was 14 months. Most recurrences were located at retroperitoneum (86%), with a median tumor size of 26 mm. All patients were rendered disease-free with chemotherapy (92%), radiotherapy (5%), or surgery followed by chemotherapy (3%). A nomogram was developed from surveillance patients that includes two independent, predictive factors for relapse: rete testis invasion and tumor size (as a continuous variable). CONCLUSION: Long-term follow-up confirms the risk-adapted approach as an effective option for patients with stage I seminoma. The pattern of relapses after adjuvant chemotherapy is similar to that observed following surveillance. A new nomogram for prediction of DFS among patients on surveillance is proposed. Rete testis invasion and tumor size should be taken into account when considering the administration of adjuvant carboplatin. Prospective validation is warranted.

Attenuation of the epidemic increase in non-Hodgkin's lymphomas in Spain.

BACKGROUND: Attenuation of the epidemic increase in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) incidence has recently been reported in the USA and Nordic European countries. After two decades of steadily increasing NHL, this study sought to ascertain whether a similar stabilisation might have taken place in Spain in recent years. PATIENTS AND METHODS: NHL cases were drawn from 13 population-based Spanish cancer registries with a record of at least 10 years of uninterrupted registration during the period 1975-2004. Overall and age-specific changes in incidence rates were evaluated using change-point Poisson models, which allow for accurate detection and estimation of trend changes. RESULTS: A total of 21 335 NHL cases (11 531 male and 9804 female) were identified. Although overall age- and registry-adjusted incidence rates rose by 5.74% annually among men and 6.58% among women across the period 1975-95, a statistically significant change-point was nevertheless detected in both sexes in 1996, followed by stabilisation. CONCLUSIONS: In Spain, NHL incidence levelled off in 1996 after a sharp increase during the 1970s and 1980s. This stabilisation is, partially at least, linked to the decrease in incidence of AIDS-related lymphomas among young adults.

Breast mass or sternalis muscle?

This is the first description of the sternalis muscle being found among the cadavers used during the last two decades in the dissection laboratories of the San Juan Bautista School of Medicine.

ATM germline mutations in Spanish early-onset breast cancer patients negative for BRCA1/BRCA2 mutations.

Heterozygous carriers of ATM (ataxia telangiectasia mutated gene) mutations have increased risk of breast cancer (BC). We have estimated the prevalence of mutations in the ATM gene among Spanish patients with early-onset BC. Forty-three patients diagnosed with BC before the age of 46 years, and negative for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations, were analysed for the presence of ATM mutations. A total of 34 ATM sequence variants were detected: 1 deleterious mutation, 10 unclassified variants and 23 polymorphisms. One patient (2.3%) carried the ATM deleterious mutation (3802delG that causes ataxia telangiectasia in the homozygous state) and 13 patients carried the 10 ATM unclassified variants. The truncating mutation 3802delG and eight of the rare variants were not detected in a control group of 150 individuals. Different bioinformatic sequence analysis tools were used to evaluate the effects of the unclassified ATM changes on RNA splicing and function protein. This in silico analysis predicted that the missense variants 7653 T>C and 8156 G>A could alter the splicing by disrupting an exonic splicing enhancer motif and the 3763 T>G, 6314 G>C, and 8156 G>A variants would affect the ATM protein function. These are the initial results concerning the prevalence of germline mutations in the ATM gene among BC cases in a Spanish population, and they suggest that ATM mutations can confer increased susceptibility to early-onset BC.

Multicentre risk-adapted management for stage I non-seminomatous germ cell tumours.

BACKGROUND: The Spanish Germ Cell Group is composed of 60 centres. Our challenge was to define a surveillance protocol that would be safe and suitable regardless of population size or geographic coverage. METHODS: From January 1994 to January 2004, 589 patients with stage I non-seminomatous germ cell tumours entered a risk-adapted surveillance protocol after orchiectomy. Patients with vascular or local invasion of adjacent structures (231/589; 39%) received two cycles of BE400P (bleomycin 30 U/week, etoposide 100 mg/m2 x4, cisplatinum 25 mg/m2 x4). Other patients (358/589; 61%) were kept on close follow-up (chest X-ray; serum tumour markers: first year every 2 months, second year every 3 months, third year every 4 months; abdominal computed tomography scans at every other outpatient control). The outcomes selected for the study were feasibility, relapse rate and number of patients lost to follow-up and mortality. RESULTS: Median follow-up was 40 months. In the surveillance group, 21 patients were lost to follow-up. In the chemotherapy group, two patients relapsed at 12 and 14.5 months and they are presently free of disease. In the surveillance group, 71 (19%) patients relapsed, of which 55 (71%) relapsed within the first year. Five (1.4%) patients died of their cancer. Factors associated with relapse were embryonal carcinoma and vascular invasion in patients who refused chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: Our risk-adapted surveillance protocol provided a low rate of recurrences.

Staphylococcus lugdunensis infective endocarditis: description of 10 cases and analysis of native valve, prosthetic valve, and pacemaker lead endocarditis clinical profiles.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the incidence and the clinical and echocardiographic features of infective endocarditis (IE) caused by Staphylococcus lugdunensis and to identify the prognostic factors of surgery and mortality in this disease. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Study at two centres (a tertiary care centre and a community hospital). PATIENTS: 10 patients with IE caused by S lugdunensis in 912 consecutive patients with IE between 1990 and 2003. METHODS: Prospective study of consecutive patients carried out by the multidisciplinary team for diagnosis and treatment of IE from the study institutions. English, French, and Spanish literature was searched by computer under the terms "endocarditis" and "Staphylococcus lugdunensis" published between 1989 and December 2003. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Patient characteristics, echocardiographic findings, required surgery, and prognostic factors of mortality in left sided cases of IE. RESULTS: 10 cases of IE caused by S lugdunensis were identified at our institutions, representing 0.8% (four of 467), 1.5% (two of 135), and 7.8% (four of 51) of cases of native valve, prosthetic valve, and pacemaker lead endocarditis in the non-drug misusers. Native valve IE was present in four patients (two aortic, one mitral, and one pulmonary), prosthetic valve aortic IE in two patients, and pacemaker lead IE in the other four patients. All patients with left sided IE had serious complications (heart failure, periannular abscess formation, or shock) requiring surgery in 60% (three of five patients) of cases with an overall mortality rate of 80% (four of five patients). All patients with pacemaker IE underwent combined medical treatment and surgery, and mortality was 25% (one patient). In total 59 cases of IE caused by S lugdunensis were identified in a review of the literature. The combined analysis of these 69 cases showed that native valve IE (53 patients, 77%) is characterised by mitral valve involvement and frequent complications such as heart failure, abscess formation, and embolism. Surgery was needed in 51% of cases and mortality was 42%. Prosthetic valve endocarditis (nine of 60, 13%) predominated in the aortic position and was associated with abscess formation, required surgery, and high mortality (78%). Pacemaker lead IE (seven of 69, 10%) is associated with a better prognosis when antibiotic treatment is combined with surgery. CONCLUSIONS: S lugdunensis IE is an uncommon cause of IE, involving mainly native left sided valves, and it is characterised by an aggressive clinical course. Mortality in left sided native valve IE is high but the prognosis has improved in recent years. Surgery has improved survival in left sided IE and, therefore, early surgery should always be considered. Prosthetic valve S lugdunensis IE carries an ominous prognosis.

Treatment of stage I and II Hodgkin's lymphoma with ABVD chemotherapy: results after 7 years of a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy with ABVD (doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine and darcarbacine) schedule is the standard treatment for advanced Hodgkin's lymphoma. Certain facts, including a low toxicity compared with MOPP/ABV (mechlorethamine, vincristine, procarbazine, prednisone, doxorubicin, bleomycin and vinblastine) and minimal potential for inducing second neoplasias or patient sterility, support the use of ABVD to treat early disease stages. In the present study, we prospectively evaluated the long-term efficacy and toxicity of six cycles of ABVD as treatment for early-stage Hodgkin's lymphoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS: From January 1990 to June 2002, 95 patients with stage I and II Hodgkin's lymphoma were treated with six ABVD cycles. Fifteen patients who met the criteria for mediastinal bulky disease also received further radiotherapy on the mediastinum. RESULTS: After six cycles, 89 patients (94%) showed a complete response (CR) and six patients (6%) showed a partial response (PR). These PRs became CRs after radiotherapy. After a median follow-up of 78 months, 14 patients had relapsed and three had died. Overall survival and progression-free survival rates at 7 years were 96% and 84%, respectively. For patients with stage IA and IIA without mediastinal bulky disease, the survival rates were 97% and 88%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The administration of six ABVD cycles is an effective and safe treatment in patients with stage I and II Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Multicenter study evaluating a dual policy of postorchiectomy surveillance and selective adjuvant single-agent carboplatin for patients with clinical stage I seminoma.

BACKGROUND: After decades of irradiation as standard therapy for clinical stage I testicular seminoma, alternative treatment approaches have emerged including postorchiectomy surveillance and adjuvant chemotherapy. This study was performed to assess a dual policy of surveillance and selective single-agent carboplatin (for high-risk cases) in a multicenter setting. PATIENTS AND METHODS: From 1994 to 1999, 203 patients with stage I seminoma were included. Sixty (29.6%) were considered poor-risk cases (i.e. with vascular invasion and/or pathological tumor stage pT2 or greater) and received two courses of adjuvant carboplatin, whereas 143 (70.4%) without risk criteria underwent close surveillance. RESULTS: Median follow-up was 52 months (range 14-92). Relapses were observed in two (3.3%) patients treated with carboplatin and in 23 patients (16.1%) on surveillance, with a median time to recurrence of 11 months (range 3.9-39.6). All relapsing patients were rendered disease-free, mainly with cisplatin-based chemotherapy. Four patients died from tumor-unrelated causes. Actuarial 5-year overall survival was 96.7% and cause-specific survival was 100%. Five-year disease-free survival was 83.5% for patients on surveillance, and 96.6% for those receiving carboplatin. CONCLUSIONS: This dual treatment policy is feasible in a multicenter setting and preserves 70% of patients from adjuvant chemotherapy. Single-agent carboplatin is effective in reducing the relapse rate in patients with high-risk stage I seminoma. A better definition of local risk features would probably improve patient selection, thus minimizing the incidence of recurrences on surveillance.

Clinical pattern and therapeutic results achieved in 1490 patients with germ-cell tumours of the testis: the experience of the Spanish Germ-Cell Cancer Group (GG).

OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical characteristics and treatment results obtained with the application of a homogeneous treatment protocol in 1490 patients with germ-cell tumours (GCT) registered in the 55 hospitals belonging to the Spanish Germ-Cell Cancer Group (GG) during the period between January 1994 and April 2001. METHODS: In general, surveillance was the common policy for stage I patients without local poor prognosis factors, whereas they received adjuvant chemotherapy in case those factor were present. Chemotherapy schedules used in advanced cases were cisplatin and etoposide (EP) for seminoma and BEP or BOMP-EPI in non-seminoma, according to whether the patient was in the good or poor prognosis IGCCCG (International Germ-Cell Cancer Collaborative Group) group. Excision of residual masses was mandatory in non-seminomatous germ-cell tumour (NSGCT). RESULTS: Initial local symptomatology was increased testis size in 90% of cases. Sonography was an excellent diagnostic tool to suggest tumour. Non-seminoma (64.2%) was more frequent than seminoma (35.8%). Approximately 10% had the antecedent of cryptorchidism. Non-seminoma patients were 7 years younger than seminoma. Right testis was involved predominantly. Pre-orchidectomy tumour markers were elevated in 21% of seminoma (betaHGC) and 79% in non-seminoma (alphaFP and/or betaHGC). Scrotum violation occurred in only 1.8%. There were significant differences among stage I and the IGCCCG prognosis groups related to a longer interval between the first symptom and orchiectomy. Eighteen percent of non-seminomatous germ-cell tumour belonged to the poor prognosis IGCCCG group. With a median follow-up to 33 months, this series has achieved a 3 year overall survival of 98% for seminoma and 94% for non-seminoma. Only 10% of excised residual masses present after chemotherapy contained malignant cells. CONCLUSION: Spanish GCT have a similar clinical pattern to that described in the other occidental countries except for a slight increased proportion of non-seminoma upon seminoma. Co-operative groups as GG are unique structures to obtain quick and wide experience on the treatment of testis tumours, contributing to achieve a high cure rate.

Phase II multicentre study of docetaxel plus cisplatin in patients with advanced urothelial cancer.

A multicentre phase II trial was undertaken to evaluate the activity and toxicity of docetaxel plus cisplatin as first-line chemotherapy in patients with urothelial cancer. Thirty-eight patients with locally advanced or metastatic transitional-cell carcinoma of the bladder, renal pelvis or ureter received the combination of docetaxel 75 mg m(-2) and cisplatin 75 mg m(-2) on day 1 and repeated every 21 days, to a maximum of six cycles. The median delivered dose-intensity was 98% (range 79-102%) of the planned dose for both drugs. There were seven complete responses and 15 partial responses, for and overall response rate of 58% (95% CI, 41-74%). Responses were even seen in three patients with hepatic metastases. The median time to progression was 6.9 months, and the median overall survival was 10.4 months. Two patients who achieved CR status remain free of disease at 4 and 3 years respectively. Grade 3-4 granulocytopenia occurred in 27 patients, resulting in five episodes of febrile neutropenia. There was one toxic death in a patient with grade 4 granulocytopenia who developed acute abdomen. Grade 3-4 thrombocytopenia was rare (one patient). Other grade 3-4 toxicities observed were anaemia (three patients), vomiting (five patients), diarrhoea (four patients), peripheral neuropathy (two patients) and non-neutropenic infections (seven patients). Docetaxel plus cisplatin is an effective and well-tolerated regimen for the treatment of advanced urothelial cancer, and warrants further investigation.