1.Diagnosis and treatment of urologic malignancies in the Philippines: A multi-center prospective cohort study (PUMA study).
Rudolfo I. DE GUZMAN ; Bennie Dick C. CATANGAY ; Norwin T. UY ; Hermenegildo Jose B. ZIALCITA ; Jose-vicente T. PRODIGALIDAD
Philippine Journal of Urology 2025;35(2):88-96
OBJECTIVES
To create a pilot urologic malignancy registry using demographic and clinical data of a cohort of patients newly diagnosed to have urologic malignancies in the year 2021.
METHODSThis was a prospective cohort study conducted in four study sites: National Kidney and Transplant Institute, East Avenue Medical Center, UP-Philippine General Hospital and Batangas Medical Center
RESULTSA total of 243 patients with newly diagnosed urologic cancers were enrolled. The median age was 61 years, with a wide range of 1 to 87 years. Most of the patients (81.47%) were male, while there were 45 females (18.52%) who had either urinary bladder, kidney or upper urothelial cancer. The most common type of malignancy was prostate cancer (34.57%), followed by kidney cancer (30.04%) and urinary bladder cancer (24.69%), consistent with the currently observed worldwide incidence. There were also 3 patients (1.23%) noted with multiple primaries. More than half of the patients (63.37%) received surgery as active treatment. After the two-year follow-up period, thirteen patients (5.35%) developed progressive disease, and 14 patients (5.76%) died.
CONCLUSIONThis urologic cancer registry represents the first multi-center, investigator-initiated epidemiologic study of its kind in the Philippines. As a proof-of-concept (POC) project, it demonstrates the feasibility of establishing a national database capturing baseline data on the country’s most common urologic malignancies.
Cohort Studies ; Multiple Chronic Conditions ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; General Surgery ; Epidemiology
2.Concomitant bilateral nephrolithiases, high-grade muscle invasive urothelial cancer, and renal mass: What would you do?.
Kristine Antonette PO ; Rudolfo I. DE GUZMAN
Philippine Journal of Urology 2025;35(2):107-111
This paper discusses the diagnostic and therapeutic approach to a patient with concomittant serious clinical conditions such as bilateral nephrolithiasis, and possible dual primary malignancies of the kidney and the urinary bladder.
A 62-year-old male presented with gross hematuria. Radiographic imaging revealed a large urinary bladder mass, bilateral hydronephrosis due to obstructive nephrolithiases, and a left solid renal mass. After appropriate cardiopulmonary optimization, the authors opted to do a preliminary transurethral resection of the bladder tumor. This was followed by staged therapies with right ultrasound-guided PCNL; a left partial nephrectomy with nephrolithotomy, and radical cystectomy with ileal conduit. Unfortunately, the patient did not survive the multiple surgeries and expired. The chronology of the various therapeutic procedures in cases of synchronous serious clinical conditions of the urinary tract such as nephrolithiasis, renal and bladder neoplasms need to be individualized and will dictate the outcome of the entire therapy.
Human ; Male ; Nephrolithiasis ; Xanthogranulomatous ; Pyelonephritis ; Muscle-invasive Urothelial ; Carcinoma
3.Efficacy of intravesical gemcitabine and docetaxel for non-muscle invasive urothelial bladder cancer: A review of current literature.
John Ivan S. Alonzo ; Rudolfo I. De Guzman
Philippine Journal of Urology 2021;31(2):55-63
OBJECTIVE:
To determine the efficacy of sequential intravesical Gemcitabine and Docetaxel (siGD) in patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) in preventing disease recurrence after transurethral resection, as an alternative to BCG-naïve patients or to failed intravesical BCG therapy.
METHODS:
An extensive literature search on the use of siGD for BCG-naïve or BCG-refractory NMIBC was done using the following terms: non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, intravesical Gemcitabine and Docetaxel. Search results were filtered to include all retrospective studies and randomized controlled trials reporting the oncological outcomes of siGD published over the last 5 years from the conception of this study. Information on the safety profile and adverse events related to therapy were also reported, if available.
RESULTS:
The authors’ search yielded 8 retrospective articles describing the efficacy of siGD for NMIBC, 5 of which had complete and accessible English manuscripts. A total of 476 low to high-risk NMIBC patients were included in the 5 eligible studies, 31 (6.5%) of which were BCG-naïve, while the rest failed BCG therapy. The reported one and two-year success rates were 54-69% and 34-55%, respectively. The recurrence-free survival rates at 1 and 2 years were 49-60% and 29-46%, respectively. Bladder cancer-specific mortality at 1 and 2-years were 1-3% and 4-11%, respectively. Treatment-related adverse reactions were mostly mild, the most common of which were urinary frequency, urgency, hematuria, and dysuria.
CONCLUSION
Sequential intravesical Gemcitabine and Docetaxel is a feasible alternative for BCG-naïve and BCG-refractory NMIBC patients. Oncological outcomes are comparable to BCG therapy with less adverse effects.
4.Radical prostatectomy on a 66-year-old patient with a positive 18F-PSMA uptake: Potential application for multiple negative prostate biopsy results.
Lester Anthony H. Florencio ; Rudolfo I. De Guzman
Philippine Journal of Urology 2021;31(2):83-88
The decision to proceed with radical prostatectomy has to be supported with biopsy-proven prostate cancer. However, when a patient has persistently multiple negative prostate biopsies and a high PSA, a serious diagnostic and therapeutic dilemma arises. The PIRADS score generated by the multiparametric-MRI of the prostate provides a guide for a template biopsy using MRI-ultrasound fusion technology, with the hope of minimizing a false negative result. Fluorine-18 Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (18F-PSMA) PET CT scan, on the other hand, is used mainly for staging prostate cancer after biochemical recurrence. The use of 18F-PSMA PET CT in the primary clinical diagnosis of prostate cancer has never been reported.The authors performed radical prostatectomy on a 66-year-old HIV-positive male with suspicious lesion on 18F-PSMA, PIRADS 5 on mp-MRI, and a persistently elevated PSA >100 despite multiple negative biopsies. The final histopathological analysis confirmed the presence of adenocarcinoma of the prostate, Gleason 7 (3+4), with negative margins. There were no intraoperative complications, and the patient was discharged in good condition. On follow-up, he had a nadir PSA of 0.058 ng/ml, has partial incontinence, and decreased erectile function and was advised phosphodiesterase inhibitors. 18F-PSMA may be utilized in the decision process for patients who are highly suspected with malignancy but have no preoperatively biopsy-proven cancer after multiple negative biopsies.
5.Detection of bladder cancer using nuclear matrix protein proteomic marker NMP22.
Mesias Cecero U. ; de la Cruz Reynaldo C. ; de Guzman Rudolfo I.
Philippine Journal of Urology 2011;21(1):9-13
OBJECTIVE: To determine the validity of NMP-22 (Bladder Check Protein Test Pack Kit) in the diagnosis of bladder cancer.
MATERIALS: From May 1, 2009 to October 31, 2009 all patients with bladder mass by ultrasound, IVP or CT scan from three different urology training institutions were enrolled in this prospective study. These patients underwent urine cytology and NMP-22 qualitative assay. The diagnosis determined from the cytoscopic and histopathologic findings from CTURBT was accepted as the gold standard.
RESULTS: Thirty nine subjects were enrolled in this study, whom of 31 patients were diagnosed of malignancy and 8 were benign in pathology. The sensitivity of urine cytology, NMP-22 assay and cytoscopy was 34.6%, 96.8% and 92.3% respectively and the specificity was 37.5% for NMP-22 and 66.1% for the cytoscopy.
CONCLUSION: The result of this study suggests that NMP-22 is a very sensitive test, however is less specific in identifying bladder cancer.
Human ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasms ; Urologic Neoplasms ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms-cytology, diagnosis, pathology ; nuclear matrix protein 22 ; ultrasonography ; Tomography Scanners, X-Ray Computed ; ;

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