The association between sarcopenia and bladder cancer-specific mortality and all-cause mortality after radical cystectomy: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To compare cancer-specific mortality (CSM) and all-cause mortality (ACM) between patients with and without sarcopenia who underwent radical cystectomy for bladder cancer. Materials and methods: We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of original articles published from October 2010 to March 2019 evaluating the effect of sarcopenia on CSM and ACM. We extracted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for CSM and ACM from the included studies. Heterogeneity amongst studies was measured using the Q-statistic and the I 2 index. Meta-analysis was performed using a random-effects model if heterogeneity was high and fixed-effects models if heterogeneity was low. Results: We identified 145 publications, of which five were included in the meta-analysis. These five studies represented 1447 patients of which 453 were classified as sarcopenic and 534 were non-sarcopenic. CSM and ACM were increased in sarcopenic vs non-sarcopenic patients (HR 1.64, 95% CI 1.30-2.08, P < 0.01 and HR 1.41, 95% CI 1.22-1.62, P < 0.01, respectively). Conclusions: Sarcopenia is significantly associated with increased CSM and ACM in bladder cancer. Identifying patients with sarcopenia will augment preoperative counselling and planning. Further studies are required to evaluate targeted interventions in patients with sarcopenia to improve clinical outcomes. Abbreviations: ACM: all-cause mortality; ASA: American Association of Anesthesiologists; BMI: body mass index; CCI: Charlson Comorbidity Index; CSM: cancer-specific mortality; CSS: cancer-specific survival; ECOG: Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group; HR: hazard ratio; NAC: neoadjuvant chemotherapy; NIH: National Institutes of Health; OS: overall survival; RC: radical cystectomy; RCT: randomised controlled trial; SMI: Skeletal Muscle Index.

Chemoprevention in Prostate Cancer: Current Perspective and Future Directions.

Chemoprevention of prostate cancer aims to reduce the mortality as well as the public burden of overdetection, which increases anxiety, cost, and morbidity related to the disease. The role of 5-α-reductase inhibitors has been well investigated and shown to decrease the risk of prostate cancer. No current evidence exists to encourage the use of nutrients or vitamins as chemopreventive agents. The modulation of inflammation is one of the most promising targets for chemoprevention of prostate cancer.

Partial Nephrectomy versus Thermal Ablation for Clinical Stage T1 Renal Masses: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of More than 3,900 Patients.

PURPOSE: A systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials was undertaken to compare percutaneous thermal ablation versus partial nephrectomy (PN) for stage T1 renal tumors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A comprehensive search of major databases was conducted from October 2000 to July 2016. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines were followed. Incidences of all-cause mortality (ACM), cancer-specific mortality (CSM), local recurrence (LR), and metastases, as well as complication rates and changes in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), were evaluated. RESULTS: Inclusion criteria were met by 15 of 961 papers. These studies represented 3,974 patients who had undergone an ablative procedure (cryoablation or radiofrequency ablation; n = 1,455; 37%) or PN (n = 2,519; 63%). ACM and CSM rates were higher for ablation than for PN (hazard ratio [HR], 2.11; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.54-2.87 [P < .05]; HR, 3.84; 95% CI, 1.66-8.88 [P < .05], respectively). No statistically significant difference in LR rate or risk of metastasis was seen between ablation and PN (HR, 1.32; 95% CI, 0.79-2.22 [P = .22]; HR, 1.83; 95% CI, 0.67-5.01 [P = 0.23], respectively). Complication rates were lower for ablation than for PN (13% vs 17.6%; odds ratio, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.25-0.94; P < .05). A significantly greater decrease in eGFR was observed after PN (13.09 mL/min/1.73 m2) vs ablation therapy (4.47 mL/min/1.73 m2). CONCLUSIONS: Thermal ablation showed no significant difference in LR or metastases compared with PN. Thermal ablation was associated with a lower morbidity rate and a lesser reduction in eGFR compared with PN, but with higher ACM and CSM rates.