3D-Image guided robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy: a multi-institutional propensity score-matched analysis (UroCCR study 51).

PURPOSE: Robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN) is a difficult procedure with risk of significant perioperative complications. The objective was to evaluate the impact of preoperative planning and intraoperative guidance with 3D model reconstructions on perioperative outcomes of RAPN. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of all patients who underwent RAPN for kidney tumor by three high-volume expert surgeons from academic centers. Clinical data were collected prospectively after written consent into the French kidney cancer network database UroCCR (CNIL-DR 2013-206; NCT03293563). Our cohort was divided into two groups: 3D-Image guided RAPN group (3D-IGRAPN) and control group. A propensity score according to age, pre-operative renal function and RENAL tumor complexity score was used. Both surgical techniques were compared in terms of perioperative outcomes. RESULTS: The initial study cohort included 230 3D-IGRAPN and 415 control RAPN. Before propensity-score matching, patients in the 3D-IGRAPN group had a larger tumor (4.3 cm vs. 3.5 cm, P < 0.001) and higher RENAL complexity score (9 vs. 8, P < 0.001). Following propensity-score matching, there were 157 patients in both groups. The rate of major complications was lower for patients in the 3D-IGRAPN group (3.8% vs. 9.5%, P = 0.04). The median percentage of eGFR variation recorded at first follow-up was lower in the 3D-IGRAPN group (- 5.6% vs. - 10.5%, P = 0.002). The trifecta achievement rate was higher in the 3D-IGRAPN group (55.7% vs. 45.1%; P = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Three-dimensional kidney reconstructions use for pre-operative planning and intraoperative surgical guidance lowers the risk of complications and improve perioperative clinical outcomes of RAPN.

Epidemiology and care pathway of vesicovaginal fistulas managed in France between 2010 and 2018.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the incidence of vesicovaginal fistula (VVF) in France. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of prospectively and systematically collected data from January 2010 to December 2018 in the French Hospital Discharge Database. We used ICD-10 code "N820" to identify new VVF diagnoses. VVF incidence was calculated using estimations of the French population. We compared age on diagnosis, medical history of pelvic tumoral disease, radiotherapy, hysterectomy and childbirth, according to three subgroups: surgical repair attempt (SRA), long-term catheter and/or nephrostomies (LTC) or immediate surgical urinary diversion (ISUD). We focused on the patients diagnosed in 2017 to better analyse VVF aetiologies and outcomes (7-year hindsight and 1 year of follow-up). Chi-squared and Kruskal-Wallis tests were, respectively, used for qualitative and quantitative data comparisons. RESULTS: Of the 196 million hospital stays out of 50 million French citizens hospitalised from 2010 to 2018, 5499 women were hospitalised for VVF. The estimated incidence of VVF was 2.3/100,000 women-year. Approximately half of the patients underwent SRA (48.4%); 39.8% had LTC and 11.9% had ISUD. Patients were younger in the SRA subgroup (53.4 ± 14.7 years p < 0.001) with a lower rate of pelvic cancer (p < 0.001) or radiotherapy (p < 0.001) and a higher rate of hysterectomies (p > 0.001). In 2017, two-thirds of the VVF diagnosed were secondary to pelvic surgery. Mean management time was 9.2 ± 10.6 months. After SRA, 5.4% underwent incontinence surgery and 5.0% underwent secondary surgical urinary diversion. CONCLUSIONS: VVF is not a rare pathology in France, mainly due to pelvic surgery. Its management is complex and not well defined.

Incidence of bladder cancer in neuro-urological patients in France: a nationwide study.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the incidence of bladder cancer (BCa) in patients with the main neurological diseases that induce neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction, namely, multiple sclerosis (MS), spinal cord injury (SCI) and spina bifida (SB). METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of nationwide data from the French Hospital Discharge Database (PMSI) from January 2010 to December 2018. The incidence of BCa was calculated in patients with MS, SCI and SB. Incidence, sex, age, radical cystectomy after BCa diagnosis and in-hospital deaths were compared between the three groups. The Chi2 and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used for qualitative and quantitative data comparisons, respectively. RESULTS: Overall, 2015 neuro-urological patients (mean (± SD) age: 65.4 ± 12.3 years) were hospitalized in France between 2010 and 2018 with a new diagnosis of BCa. In neuro-urological patients, BCa was more frequent in men than in women (sex ratio: 3.08). The incidence of BCa in neuro-urological patients was 174.9/100,000 persons/year. The incidence of BCa was 791.1/100,000 persons/year in SCI compared to 56.6 in MS and 113.8 in SB (p < 0.0001). After the initial diagnosis of BCa, 551 (27.3%) patients underwent a radical cystectomy and 613 (30.4%) died in hospital after BCa diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of BCa in France between 2010 and 2018 was 174.9/100 000 persons/year, and was particularly high in patients with SCI.

Day-case robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy: feasibility and preliminary results of a prospective evaluation (UroCCR-25 AMBU-REIN study).

PURPOSE: Robotic partial nephrectomy (RPN) is a minimally-invasive technique used to treat renal tumors. A clinical pathway and prospective research protocol (AMBU-REIN) were specifically set up to establish and assess the routine use of day-case RPN. METHODS: The AMBU-REIN study was conducted in the framework of the French research network on kidney cancer UroCCR (NCT03293563). We present our initial experience of patients treated using day-case RPN and released from our hospital on the same day, focusing on patient selection, safety and patient satisfaction using the EVAN-G validated questionnaire. RESULTS: Between September 2016 and September 2019, 429 RPN were performed and 82 patients were consecutively selected for day-case RPN. Patients were managed using transperitoneal RPN with off-clamp tumorectomy for 66/82 cases. Mean tumor size was 2.7 ± 1.2 cm. There were no immediate severe postoperative complications; 7/82 patients were kept under observation overnight and discharged the following day. The follow-up at day 30 indicated postoperative complications, readmissions, and mortality rates of 1.2, 1.2, and 0%, respectively. Next-day patient satisfaction questionnaires indicated that patients were generally highly satisfied, with a mean ± standard deviation global score of 83.6 ± 10.3%. "Attention" was rated the highest overall (mean 94.8 ± 10.5%), while "pain management" scored the lowest (61.2 ± 20.5%). CONCLUSIONS: This prospective case series is the first to demonstrate the safety and feasibility of day-case RPN. For selected patients and through a dedicated, nurse-led clinical pathway, it provided a high level of patient satisfaction. Expected benefits on healthcare cost savings warrant further investigation.

Are we ready for day-case partial nephrectomy?

Fast-track and day-case surgeries are gaining more and more importance. Their development was eased by the diffusion of minimal invasive surgical strategies and the consequential morbidity reduction. In the field of kidney cancer, seven cases of ambulatory radical nephrectomy were previously reported in the international literature. Regarding robotic partial nephrectomy (PN), short postoperative pathways resulting in patients' discharge on postoperative day 1 were shown to be safe and feasible. We report our initial experience of robot-assisted PN discharged on postoperative day zero and discuss the criteria for adequate patient selection. Indeed, outpatient PN will obviously not be suitable for all patients, and careful selection will be mandatory. Both specific baseline patient's factors and postoperative events will have to be recognized for the first ones and prevented for the second ones. Safety, patient satisfaction, cost efficiency, and reproducibility will be the key factors to assess and promote day-case PN.

Impact of lymphovascular invasion on oncological outcomes in patients with upper tract urothelial carcinoma after radical nephroureterectomy.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the impact of lymphovascular invasion (LVI) on upper urinary tract urothelial carcinomas (UTUCs) in a multicentre study on cancer-specific survival (CSS), recurrence-free survival and metastasis-free survival (MFS). To show the negative impact of LVI for patients with pN0/x disease and to stratify these patients into risk groups for metastatic relapse. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A multicentre retrospective study was performed on patients who underwent radical nephroureterectomy between 1995 and 2010. LVI status was evaluated as a prognostic factor for survival using univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis. RESULTS: Overall, 551 patients were included and were divided into two groups: those without LVI (LVI-), n = 388 and those with LVI (LVI+), n = 163. LVI+ status was associated with high stage and grade UTUC and lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001). The 5-year CSS and MFS rates were significantly worse in the LVI+ group than in LVI- group (52.2 vs 84.5%, P < 0.001 and 43.8 vs 82.7%, P < 0.001, respectively). In multivariate analysis, LVI+ status was an independent prognostic factor for CSS and MFS (P = 0.04 and P < 0.001). These findings were confirmed for the pN0/x patient subgroup (n = 504, P < 0.001). In the pN0/x patient subgroup, we described a prognostic tool for MFS based on independent factors that permitted us to stratify patients into groups of high, intermediate or low risk of metastasis relapse. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of LVI was a strong predictor of a poor outcome for UTUC. When a lymphadenectomy has not been achieved, the report of LVI status is crucial to identfiy those patients at higher risk for metastatic relapse.

The impact of lymph node status and features on oncological outcomes in urothelial carcinoma of the upper urinary tract (UTUC) treated by nephroureterectomy.

PURPOSE: Prognostic impact of lymphadenectomy during radical nephroureterectomy (RNU) for urothelial carcinoma of the upper urinary tract (UTUC) is controversial. Our aim was to assess the impact of lymph node status (LNS) on survival in patients treated by RNU. METHODS: In our multi-institutional, retrospective database, 714 patients with non-metastatic UTUC had undergone RNU between 1995 and 2010. LNS was tested as prognostic factor for survivals through univariate and multivariable Cox regression analysis. RESULTS: Median age was 70 years [interquartile range (IQR), 60-75] with median follow-up of 27 months (IQR, 10-50). Overall, lymphadenectomy was performed in 254 patients (35.5 %). Among these patients, 204 (80 %) had negative lymph nodes (pN0) and 50 (20 %) had positive lymph nodes (pN1/2). The 5-year cancer-specific survival (CSS) was 81 % [95 % confidence interval (CI), 73-88 %] for pN0 patients, 85 % (95 % CI, 80-90 %) for pNx patients and 47 % (95 % CI, 24-69 %) for pN1/2 patients (p < 0.001). Metastasis-free survival (MFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were significantly lower in pN1/2 patients than in pN0 and pNx patients (p < 0.05). On multivariable analysis, LNS did not appear as an independent prognostic factor for CSS, OS or MFS (p > 0.05). In case of lymph node involvement, extra-nodal extension was marginally associated with worse CSS (log rank p = 0.07). The retrospective design was the main limitation. CONCLUSION: LNS is helpful for survival stratification in patients treated with RNU for UTUC. However, LNS did not appear as an independent predictor of survival in this retrospective series and needs to be investigated in a large multicentre, prospective evaluation.

Rationale and efficacy of interleukin-1 targeting in Erdheim-Chester disease.

Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD) pathophysiology remains largely unknown. Its treatment is not codified and usually disappointing. Interferon (IFN)-α therapy lacks efficacy for some life-threatening manifestations and has a poor tolerance profile. Because interleukin (IL)-1Ra synthesis is naturally induced after stimulation by IFN-α, we hypothesized that recombinant IL-1Ra (anakinra) might have some efficacy in ECD. We treated 2 patients who had poor tolerance or contraindication to IFN-α with anakinra as a rescue therapy and measured their serum C-reactive protein, IL-1ß, IL-6, and monocytic membranous IL-1α (mIL-1α) levels before, under, and after therapy. Another untreated ECD patient and 5 healthy subjects were enrolled as controls. After treatment, fever and bone pains rapidly disappeared in both patients, as well as eyelid involvement in one patient. In addition, retroperitoneal fibrosis completely or partially regressed, and C-reactive protein, IL-6, and mIL-1α levels decreased to within the normal and control range. Beside injection-site reactions, no adverse event was reported. Therefore, our results support a central role of the IL-1 network, which seemed to be overstimulated in ECD. Its specific blockade using anakinra thereby opens new pathophysiology and therapeutic perspectives in ECD.

A proportion of hereditary upper urinary tract urothelial carcinomas are misclassified as sporadic according to a multi-institutional database analysis: proposal of patient-specific risk identification tool.

UNLABELLED: What's known on the subject? and What does the study add? Hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), also known as Lynch syndrome, is an autosomal dominant multi-organ cancer syndrome. Upper urinary tract urothelial carcinomas belong to HNPCC-related tumours and rank third within this group after colorectal and endometrial cancer. However, many urologists are not aware of this association and it is presumed that some hereditary cancers are misclassified as sporadic and that their incidence is underestimated. Consequently, family members of patients with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinomas secondary to HNPCC may be denied appropriate surveillance and early detection. A significant proportion of patients (21.3%) with newly diagnosed upper urinary tract urothelial carcinomas may have underlying HNPCC. Demographic and epidemiological characteristics suggest different mechanisms of carcinogenesis among this population. Recognition of such potential is essential for appropriate clinical and genetic management of patients and family. In order to help to identify these patients, we propose a patient-specific checklist. OBJECTIVE: • To identify, based on previously described clinical criteria, hereditary upper urinary tract urothelial carcinomas (UUT-UCs) that are likely to be misclassified as sporadic although they may belong to the spectrum of hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC) associated cancers. PATIENTS AND METHODS: • We identified, using established clinical criteria, suspected hereditary UUT-UC among 1122 patients included in the French national database for UUT-UC. • Patients were considered at risk for hereditary status in the following situations: age at diagnosis <60 years with no previous history of bladder cancer; previous history of HNPCC-related cancer regardless of age; one first-degree relative with HNPCC-related cancer diagnosed before 50 years of age or two first-degree relatives diagnosed regardless of age. RESULTS: • Overall, 239 patients (21.3%) were considered to be at risk of hereditary UUT-UC. • Compared with sporadic cases, hereditary cases are more likely to be female (P= 0.047) with less exposure to tobacco (P= 0.012) and occupational carcinogens (P= 0.037). A greater proportion of tumours were located in the renal pelvis (54.5% vs 48.4%; P= 0.026) and were lower grade (40% vs 30.1%; P= 0.015) in the hereditary cohort. • The overall, cancer-specific and recurrence-free survival rates were similar in both cohorts. • We propose a patient-specific risk identification tool. CONCLUSIONS: • A significant proportion (21.3%) of patients with newly diagnosed UUT-UC may have underlying HNPCC as a cause. • Recognition of such potential and application of a patient-specific checklist upon diagnosis will allow identification and appropriate clinical and genetic management for patient and family.

Consequences of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on urological surgery in France: a nationwide analysis of the healthcare system database.

The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak overwhelmed the healthcare systems worldwide. Saturation of hospitals and the risk of contagion led to a reduction in the care of other diseases. OBJECTIVE: To determine the impact of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on urological surgery in France during the year 2020. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: An observational descriptive study was conducted on anonymised data collected from the national healthcare database established each year as part of the Program for the Medicalization of Information Systems in Medicine, Surgery, Obstetrics and Odontology. INTERVENTION: None. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: We gathered the number of urology surgical procedures carried out between 2010 and 2019, and we observed the difference between the forecast and actual number of urological surgeries performed in 2020. RESULTS: Urological surgeries decreased by 11.4%, non-oncological surgeries being more affected (-13.1%) than oncological ones (-4.1%). Among the most relevant surgeries, female urinary incontinence (-44.7%) and benign prostatic hyperplasia (-20.8%) were the most impacted ones, followed by kidney cancer (-9%), urolithiasis (-8.7%), radical cystectomy for bladder cancer (-6.1%), prostate cancer (-3.6%) and transurethral resection of bladder tumour (-2%). Public hospitals had a more reduced activity (-17.7%) than private ones (-9.1%). Finally, the distribution of the reduction in urological activities by region did not correspond to the regional burden of SARS-CoV-2. CONCLUSIONS: Urological care was severely affected during SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Even if oncological surgeries were prioritised, the longer it takes to receive appropriate care, the greater the risk on survival impact. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The data collection and analysis was authorised by the French Data Protection Authority (CNIL) under the number1 861 282v2.