Purpose: We evaluated the risk factors associated with failure to complete gemcitabine–cisplatin (GP) neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC). Materials and Methods: In total, 231 patients with MIBC treated with NAC before undergoing radical cystectomy between 2013 and 2022 participated in this study. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between the likelihood of incomplete NAC and clinical and demographic variables, including age, sex, hypertension (HTN), diabetes mellitus (DM), prechemotherapy glomerular filtration rate, clinical T stage, clinical N stage, and body mass index (BMI). Results: Of 231 patients, 209 (90.5%) and 22 (9.5%) completed and discontinued the NAC course, respectively. The mean age was 66.13±9.15, 65.63±9.07, and 70.86±8.66 years for the total sample, continuation, and discontinuation groups, respectively (p=0.010). No significant inter-group differences in sex, HTN, height, weight, BMI, pre-chemotherapy glomerular filtration rate, clinical T stage, or clinical N stage were observed. According to the results of the multivariable analysis, age (odds ratio [OR] 1.076, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.013–1.143, p=0.018) and the presence of DM (OR 2.541, 95% CI 1.028–6.281, p=0.043) were significantly associated with NAC discontinuation. Conclusions Thus, older age and presence of DM are potential risk factors for GP NAC discontinuation in patients with MIBC.Further studies are required to validate our findings and develop strategies to minimize the rate of GP NAC discontinuation in this population.

Purpose: In this study, we aimed to determine the clinicopathologic, radiologic, and molecular significance of the tumor invasiveness to further stratify the patients with high-grade (HG) upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) who can be treated less aggressively. Materials and Methods: Clinicopathologic and radiologic characteristics of 166 surgically resected HG UTUC (48 noninvasive, and 118 invasive) cases were evaluated. Six noninvasive UTUC cases with intratumoral tumor grade heterogeneity were selected for whole-exome sequencing (WES) to understand the underlying molecular pathophysiology. Barcode-tagging sequencing was done for validation of the target genes from WES data. Results: Patients with noninvasive UTUC showed no cancer-specific death with better cancer-specific survival (p < 0.001) and recurrence-free survival (p < 0.001) compared to the patients with invasive UTUC. Compared to the invasive UTUC, noninvasive UTUC was correlated to a low grade (LG) on the preoperative abdominal computed tomography (CT) grading system (p < 0.001), histologic intratumoral tumor grade heterogeneity (p=0.018), discrepancy in preoperative urine cytology diagnosis (p=0.018), and absence of urothelial carcinoma in situ (p < 0.001). WES of the heterogeneous components showed mutually shared HRAS and FGFR3 mutations shared between the HG and LG components. HRAS mutation was associated with the lower grade on preoperative abdominal CT and intratumoral tumor grade heterogeneity (p=0.045 and p < 0.001, respectively), whereas FGFR3 mutation was correlated to the absence of carcinoma in situ (p < 0.001). Conclusion According to our comprehensive analysis, HG noninvasive UTUC can be preoperatively suspected based on distinct preoperative radiologic, cytologic, histologic, and molecular features. Noninvasive HG UTUC shows excellent prognosis and thus should be treated less aggressively.

Purpose: This study investigated the prognostic factors and cancer-specific survival (CSS) of patients who had renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with venous thrombus and underwent radical nephrectomy with thrombectomy (RNTx). Materials and Methods: From January 1990 to December 2022, we retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients diagnosed with RCC with venous thrombus who underwent RNTx at a single tertiary medical center. Univariate and multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression analyses were conducted to identify significant prognostic factors affecting CSS. A Kaplan-Meier model was used to calculate CSS rates at 1, 3, and 5 years after RNTx. Results: We included 262 patients in the final analysis (median age, 59 years) with a median follow-up of 28 months. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year CSS rates were 84.1%, 62.5%, and 46.4%, respectively. Multivariable analysis revealed that pathologic T4 stage (hazard ratio [HR], 3.711; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.599–8.611, p=0.002), pathologic N1 stage (HR, 2.371; 95% CI, 1.231–4.567; p=0.01), sarcomatoid differentiation (HR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.027–3.477; p=0.041), and tumor necrosis (HR, 2.993; 95% CI, 1.132–7.914; p=0.027) were associated with CSS. Conclusions Approximately one-third of all RCC patients with venous thrombus remained disease-free, and half survived 5 years after RNTx. Sarcomatoid differentiation and the presence of tumor necrosis in pathology predicted poorer CSS outcomes in our study. Further retrospective studies are required to validate these findings.

Background and Objectives: We compared the efficacy and safety of human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSC), delivered at different doses and via different injection routes in an animal model of chronic kidney disease. Methods: and Results: A total of ninety 12-week-old rats underwent 5/6 nephrectomy and randomized among nine groups: sham, renal artery control (RA-C), tail vein control (TV-C), renal artery low dose (RA-LD) (0.5×10 6 cells), renal artery moderate dose (RA-MD) (1.0×10 6 cells), renal artery high dose (RA-HD) (2.0×10 6 cells), tail vein low dose (TV-LD) (0.5×10 6 cells), tail vein moderate dose (TV-MD) (1.0×10 6 cells), and tail vein high dose (TV-HD) (2.0×10 6 cells). Renal function and mortality of rats were evaluated after hBMSC injection. Serum blood urea nitrogen was significantly lower in the TV-HD group at 2 weeks (p＜0.01), 16 weeks (p＜0.05), and 24 weeks (p＜0.01) than in the TV-C group, as determined by one-way ANOVA. Serum creatinine was significantly lower in the TV-HD group at 24 weeks (p＜0.05). At 8 weeks, creatinine clearance was significantly higher in the TV-MD and TV-HD groups (p＜0.01, p＜0.05) than in the TV-C group. In the safety evaluation, we observed no significant difference among the groups. Conclusions Our findings confirm the efficacy and safety of high dose (2×10 6 cells) injection of hBMSC via the tail vein.

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the prognosis of pathologically node-positive bladder cancer after neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the role of adjuvant chemotherapy in these patients, and the value of preoperative clinical evaluation for lymph node metastases. Materials and Methods: Patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by partial/radical cystectomy and had pathologically confirmed lymph node metastases between January 2007 and December 2019 were identified and analyzed. Results: A total of 53 patients were included in the study. The median age was 61 years (range, 34 to 81 years) with males comprising 86.8%. Among the 52 patients with post-neoadjuvant/pre-operative computed tomography results, only 33 patients (63.5%) were considered positive for lymph node metastasis. Sixteen patients (30.2%) received adjuvant chemotherapy (AC group), and 37 patients did not (no AC group). With the median follow-up duration of 67.7 months, the median recurrence-free survival (RFS) and the median overall survival (OS) was 8.5 months and 16.2 months, respectively. The 2-year RFS and OS rates were 23.3% and 34.6%, respectively. RFS and OS did not differ between the AC group and no AC group (median RFS, 8.8 months vs. 6.8 months, p=0.772; median OS, 16.1 months vs. 16.3 months, p=0.479). Thirty-eight patients (71.7%) experienced recurrence. Distant metastases were the dominant pattern of failure in both the AC group (91.7%) and no AC group (76.9%). Conclusion Patients with lymph node-positive disease after neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery showed high recurrence rates with limited survival outcomes. Little benefit was observed with the addition of adjuvant chemotherapy.

Purpose: To identify the risk factors leading to radical cystectomy in patients who had undergone nephroureterectomy (NUx). Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients with upper tract urothelial carcinoma who underwent NUx during 2011–2019 and excluded patients with metastatic cancer. In total 646 patients were included in this study; of these, 532 had no previous bladder cancer history. Follow-up was performed every 3 months for 2 years after NUx was administered, and recurrence was confirmed using cystoscopy, urine cytology, computed tomography, and chest radiography. Bladder recurrence was confirmed through biopsy, urine cytology, or radiologic examination. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyzes were performed for statistical analysis of risk factors leading to radical cystectomy in patients undergoing NUx. Results: Lymphovascular invasion (LVI) (hazard ratio [HR], 4.728; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.463–15.570; p=0.011), previous transurethral resection of bladder tumor history (HR, 3.825; 95% CI, 1.164–12.571; p=0.027), and intravesical recurrence (IVR) within 6 months (HR, 3.733; 95% CI, 1.091–12.778; p=0.036) in patients undergoing NUx are predictors of radical cystectomy implementation. In a multivariate analysis of patients without bladder cancer history, bladder recurrence was identified as a predictor of radical cystectomy implementation, if it occurred within 6 months of NUx (HR, 8.608; 95% CI, 1.545–47.976; p=0.014). Conclusions LVI and IVR within 6 months and previous bladder cancer history are factors that can predict the need for radical cystectomy after NUx. Even in patients without bladder cancer history, early bladder recurrence within 6 months is a major predictor of radical cystectomy.

Purpose: To evaluate the association between microscopic hematuria (MH) detected by surveillance urinalysis and cancer recurrence in nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) patients. Materials and Methods: A total of 1,082 NMIBC patients who underwent transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURB) procedures at Asan Medical Center between January 2017 and December 2019 were included. We retrospectively reviewed the follow-up data for these cases including cystoscopy, urinalysis, and urine cytology. The association between urine testing and cancer recurrence was assessed by both univariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results: The study patients had a median age of 68 years (interquartile range, 60–75 years) and comprised 898 men and 184 women. Among the 1,428 TURB procedures conducted in this series, 548 of the lesions (38.4%) were diagnosed as low-grade and 880 (61.6%) as highgrade cancers. A total of 3,309 follow-up cystoscopies were conducted during the study period and were divided into high-grade (HG) (2,011 cases) and low-grade (LG) (1,298 cases) groups according to the latest TURB pathology. MH was found to have a statistically significant association with NMIBC recurrence in both the LG (odds ratio [OR], 1.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.107–2.223; p=0.011) and HG (OR, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.434–2.517; p<0.001) groups. Conclusions Urinalysis during follow-up may provide important information on cancer recurrence in NMIBC patients.

Purpose: To construct a urologic cancer database using a standardized, reproducible method, and to assess preliminary characteristics of this cohort. Materials and Methods: Patients with prostate, bladder, and kidney cancers who were enrolled with diagnostic codes in the electronic medical record (EMR) at Asan Medical Center from 2007–2016 were included. Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) was used to design the Asan Medical Center-Urologic Cancer Database (AMC-UCD). The process included developing a data dictionary, applying branching logic, mapping clinical data warehouse structures, alpha testing, clinical record summary testing, creating “standards of procedure,” importing data, and entering data. Descriptive statistics were used to identify rates of surgeries and numbers of patients. Results: Clinical variables (n=407) were selected to develop a data dictionary from REDCap. In total, 20,198 urologic cancer patients visited our institution from 2007–2016 (bladder cancer, 4,616; kidney cancer, 5,750; prostate cancer, 10,330). The overall numbers of patients and surgeries increased over time, with robotic surgeries rapidly growing over a decade. The most common treatment for urologic cancer was surgery, followed by chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Conclusions Using a standardized method, the AMC-UCD fosters multidisciplinary research. This constructed database provides access to clinical statistics to effectively assist research. Preliminary data should be refined through EMR chart review. The successful organization of data from 2007–2016 provides a framework for future periods of investigation and prospective models.

Objective: . Hydronephrosis, a common complication of idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis (iRPF), may lead to poor renal outcomes unless resolved in a timely manner. IgG4-related diseases characterized by elevated serum IgG4 levels are responsible for a few iRPF cases. However, the underlying immunologic features of most iRPF cases have not been clearly defined, and these cases exhibit varied responses to medical treatment. Thus, we investigated the predictive factors for hydronephrosis-associated outcomes among iRPF patients. Methods: . We retrospectively included 18 iRPF patients with hydronephrosis in a tertiary referral hospital from 2012 to 2019. Hydronephrosis improvement was assessed on images taken 6 months after diagnosis. Categorical variables were compared using chi-square or Fisher’s exact test. Continuous variables were compared using Mann–Whitney U-test. Results: . On follow-up images, 8 patients (44.4%) showed an improvement in hydronephrosis. Patients with improvement more frequently had reverse serum IgG4/IgG3 ratio (87.5% vs. 30%, p=0.025), abdominal aorta involvement (87.5% vs. 30%, p=0.025) and glucocorticoid treatment administration (87.5% vs. 30%, p=0.025) than those without improvement. The proportion of elevated serum IgG4 level did not differ between the two groups.Even in the 14 cases with normal serum IgG4 levels, reverse serum IgG4/IgG3 ratio was more frequently observed in patients with improvement than in those without improvement (83.3% vs. 12.5%, p=0.026). Conclusion . The reverse serum IgG4/IgG3ratio was associated with hydronephrosis improvement in iRPF patients, suggesting it to be a suitable serologic marker for predicting favourable responses to glucocorticoid treatment.

PURPOSE: The lower incidence of bladder cancer among women has led to a lack of information on female radical cystectomy (RC). This study aimed to analyze the characteristics related with female RC in a cohort from multiple academic institutions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective review of 384 female patients who underwent RC for bladder cancer. Epidemiologic, perioperative variables including urologic referral periodwith consequent pathologic stage distributions were assessed. The changes in surgical techniques over time were illustrated. Also, we evaluated recurrence-free survival (RFS) at 2 and 5 years and overall survival (OS) at 5 years with stage-specific analyses using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: The mean follow-up time was 35 months (interquartile rage [IQR], 9 to 55). The average time to urologic referral with initial symptoms was 5.5 (IQR, 1 to 6) months and over 20% of patients visited clinics after 6 months. In subsequent stage distributions according to referral period, T2 or higher stage distributions were abruptly increased after 1 year. Overall 2-year/5-year RFS rates were 0.72/0.57 and 5-year OS was 0.61. Notable surgical descriptions were as follows: 91% of patients underwent open RC; 80% of patients underwent an ileal conduit; and 83% of patients received anterior exenteration. However, the proportions of robotic surgery, orthotopic neobladder and organ sparing cystectomy have increased recently. CONCLUSION: We identified the general characteristics and changes in pattern of female RC. Our results also suggest that women are susceptible to delays in referral to an urologist and are at greater risk for worse prognosis.
Cohort Studies ; Cystectomy ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Methods ; Prognosis ; Rage ; Referral and Consultation ; Retrospective Studies ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; Urinary Diversion