Objective:To evaluate the long-term oncological outcomes of partial nephrectomy(PN)in patients with renal cell carcinoma(RCC)who were clinically staged as clinical T1(cT1)preoperatively but upstaged to pathological T3a(pT3a)after surgery.Methods:A total of 427 RCC patients postopera-tively diagnosed as pT3aN0M0 at Peking University Third Hospital from February 2013 to December 2022 were retrospectively reviewed.Among them,33 cT1 patients upstaged to pT3a RCC received PN(PN group),while 394 non-upstaged pT3a RCC patients underwent radical nephrectomy(RN,RN group).Propensity score matching was performed at a 1∶1 ratio based on baseline characteristics.The Kaplan-Meier method was used to assess overall survival(OS),cancer-specific survival(CSS),and disease-free survival(DFS),with Log-rank tests and Cox regression models for multivariate analysis.Results:Before matching,the PN group(n=33)had significantly higher rates of perirenal fat invasion(PFI,45.5％vs.15.2％)and segmental renal vein involvement(42.4％vs.20.8％),but lower rates of renal sinus invasion(RSI,21.2％vs.73.6％)and renal vein tumor thrombus(0％vs.15.2％)compared with the RN group(n=394,all P＜0.05).After matching,baseline characteristics were comparable between the PN group(n=33)and RN group(n=33).No significant differences were observed in operative time,blood loss,mean hospital stay,complication rate,positive margin rate,or conversion to open surgery between the two groups(P＞0.05).However,the PN group showed significantly higher estimated glomerular filtration rate(eGFR)postoperatively[76.9(55.4,87.3)mL/(min·1.73 m2)vs.61.7(56.8,73.5)mL/(min·1.73 m2),P＜0.05],indicating better renal function preserva-tion.No significant differences were found in OS,CSS,or DFS between the groups(P＞0.05).Multi-variate ana-lysis identified renal vein invasion(RVI),higher Fuhrman grades(Ⅲ-Ⅳ),and sarcoma-toid differentiation as independent risk factors for DFS and CSS in the pT3a RCC patients(P＜0.05).Conclusion:For cT1 RCC patients upstaged to pT3a,PN preserves renal function more effectively while achieving com-parable oncological outcomes to RN.RVI,higher Fuhrmann grade,and sarcomatoid differentiation are independent risk factors for pT3N0M0 RCC patients.

Objective:To evaluate the long-term oncological outcomes of partial nephrectomy(PN)in patients with renal cell carcinoma(RCC)who were clinically staged as clinical T1(cT1)preoperatively but upstaged to pathological T3a(pT3a)after surgery.Methods:A total of 427 RCC patients postopera-tively diagnosed as pT3aN0M0 at Peking University Third Hospital from February 2013 to December 2022 were retrospectively reviewed.Among them,33 cT1 patients upstaged to pT3a RCC received PN(PN group),while 394 non-upstaged pT3a RCC patients underwent radical nephrectomy(RN,RN group).Propensity score matching was performed at a 1∶1 ratio based on baseline characteristics.The Kaplan-Meier method was used to assess overall survival(OS),cancer-specific survival(CSS),and disease-free survival(DFS),with Log-rank tests and Cox regression models for multivariate analysis.Results:Before matching,the PN group(n=33)had significantly higher rates of perirenal fat invasion(PFI,45.5％vs.15.2％)and segmental renal vein involvement(42.4％vs.20.8％),but lower rates of renal sinus invasion(RSI,21.2％vs.73.6％)and renal vein tumor thrombus(0％vs.15.2％)compared with the RN group(n=394,all P＜0.05).After matching,baseline characteristics were comparable between the PN group(n=33)and RN group(n=33).No significant differences were observed in operative time,blood loss,mean hospital stay,complication rate,positive margin rate,or conversion to open surgery between the two groups(P＞0.05).However,the PN group showed significantly higher estimated glomerular filtration rate(eGFR)postoperatively[76.9(55.4,87.3)mL/(min·1.73 m2)vs.61.7(56.8,73.5)mL/(min·1.73 m2),P＜0.05],indicating better renal function preserva-tion.No significant differences were found in OS,CSS,or DFS between the groups(P＞0.05).Multi-variate ana-lysis identified renal vein invasion(RVI),higher Fuhrman grades(Ⅲ-Ⅳ),and sarcoma-toid differentiation as independent risk factors for DFS and CSS in the pT3a RCC patients(P＜0.05).Conclusion:For cT1 RCC patients upstaged to pT3a,PN preserves renal function more effectively while achieving com-parable oncological outcomes to RN.RVI,higher Fuhrmann grade,and sarcomatoid differentiation are independent risk factors for pT3N0M0 RCC patients.

Objective:To predict the 3-year cancer-specific survival(CSS)of patients with non-meta-static T3a renal cell carcinoma after surgery.Methods:A total of 336 patients with pathologically con-firmed T3a N0-1M0 renal cell carcinoma(RCC)who underwent surgical treatment at the Department of Urology,Peking University Third Hospital from March 2013 to February 2021 were retrospectively collect-ed.The patients were randomly divided into a training cohort of 268 cases and an internal validation co-hort of 68 cases at an 4∶1 ratio.Using two-way Lasso regression,variables were selected to construct a nomogram for predicting the 3-year cancer-specific survival(CSS)of the patients with T3aN0-1M0 RCC.Performance assessment of the nomogram included evaluation of discrimination and calibration ability,as well as clinical utility using measures such as the concordance index(C-index),time-dependent area un-der the receiver operating characteristic curve[time-dependent area under the curve(AUC)],calibra-tion curve,and decision curve analysis(DCA).Risk stratification was determined based on the nomo-gram scores,and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Log-rank tests were employed to compare progres-sion-free survival(PFS)and cancer-specific survival(CSS)among the patients in the different risk groups.Results:Based on the Lasso regression screening results,the nomogram was constructed with five variables:tumor maximum diameter,histological grading,sarcomatoid differentiation,T3a feature,and lymph node metastasis.The baseline data of the training and validation sets showed no statistical differences(P＞0.05).The consistency indices of the column diagram were found to be 0.808(0.708-0.907)and 0.903(0.838-0.969)for the training and internal validation sets,respectively.The AUC values for 3-year cancer-specific survival were 0.843(0.725-0.961)and 0.923(0.844-1.002)for the two sets.Calibration curves of both sets demonstrated a high level of consistency between the actual CSS and predicted probability.The decision curve analysis(DCA)curves indicated that the column dia-gram had a favorable net benefit in clinical practice.A total of 336 patients were included in the study,with 35 cancer-specific deaths and 69 postoperative recurrences.According to the line chart,the patients were divided into low-risk group(scoring 0-117)and high-risk group(scoring 119-284).Within the low-risk group,there were 16 tumor-specific deaths out of 282 cases and 36 postoperative recurrences out of 282 cases.In the high-risk group,there were 19 tumor-specific deaths out of 54 cases and 33 post-operative recurrences out of 54 cases.There were significant differences in progression-free survival(PFS)and cancer-specific survival(CSS)between the low-risk and high-risk groups(P＜0.000 1).Conclusion:A nomogram model predicting the 3-year CSS of non-metastatic T3a renal cell carcinoma patients was successfully constructed and validated in this study.This nomogram can assist clinicians in accurately assessing the long-term prognosis of such patients.

Objective:To investigate the clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of pT 3a stage non-clear cell renal cell carcinoma (nccRCC). Methods:The clinical data of 438 patients with pT 3a stage renal cell carcinoma treated by surgery at Peking University Third Hospital from March 2013 to March 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, there were 58 cases in the nccRCC group and 380 cases in the clear cell RCC (ccRCC) group. There were statistically significant differences in age, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) classification, and comorbidities between the two groups (all P<0.05). Therefore, propensity score matching was used to adjust the baseline data of the two groups. After matching, there were 58 cases in the nccRCC group and 232 cases in the ccRCC group. There were no statistically significant differences in gender (male/female: 34/24 cases and 165/67 cases), age (53.3±16.8 years and 56.6±11.6 years), ASA classification (1/2/3/4: 19/34/5/0 cases and 60/163/8/1 cases), comorbidities (present/absent: 16/42 cases and 76/156 cases), tumor maximum diameter [6.7 (5.3, 8.4) cm and 5.8 (4.6, 7.8) cm], and nephron sparing surgery(yes/no: 4/54 cases and 15/217 cases) (all P > 0.05). The overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of two groups were compared, the Kaplan-Meier method was employed to plot survival curves. Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to analyze the relationship between different pT 3a characteristics in the nccRCC group and progression-free survival. Results:In the matched cohort, the median follow-up time for the nccRCC group and ccRCC group were 28.0 (16.3, 45.3) months and 31.0 (18.0, 57.0) months, respectively. The pathological types in the nccRCC group included chromophobe renal cell carcinoma (20 cases, 34.5%), papillary renal cell carcinoma (20 cases, 34.5%), Xp11.2 translocation renal cell carcinoma (8 cases, 13.8%), mucinous tubular and spindle cell carcinoma (3 cases, 5.2%), and other or unclassified renal cell carcinoma (7 cases, 12.1%). There was no statistical significance between the nccRCC and ccRCC groups in terms of invasion of the renal vein without involvement of the vein wall (yes/no: 5/53 cases and 41/191 cases), vascular invasion (yes/no: 18/40 cases and 52/180 cases), invasion of the perirenal fat (yes/no: 15/43 cases and 39/193 cases), invasion of the renal pelvis and sinus (yes/no: 51/7 cases and 200/32 cases), or sarcomatoid differentiation (yes/no: 2/56 cases and 4/228 cases)(all P > 0.05). However, there was a statistically significant difference in lymph node involvement (yes/no: 3/229 cases and 9/49 cases, P < 0.01). The 5-year PFS and OS of nccRCC group were 67% (95% CI 52%-86%) and 70% (95% CI 55%-89%) respectively. While the 5-year PFS and OS of ccRCC group were 78% (95% CI 70%-86%) and 87% (95% CI 81%-93%) respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in PFS between the two groups ( P>0.05), but there was a statistically significant difference in OS ( P<0.01). Furthermore, within specific pathological types, the 5-year PFS and OS rates of chromophobe renal cell carcinoma were 88% (95% CI 67%-100%) and 86% (95% CI 63%-100%) respectively, followed by papillary renal cell carcinoma with 5-year PFS of 55% (95% CI 33%-91%) and 5-year OS of 65% (95% CI 44%-97%), and Xp11.2 translocation renal cell carcinoma with 5-year PFS of 38% (95% CI 9%-100%) and 5-year OS of 43% (95% CI 10%-100%). The difference in PFS and OS between ccRCC, chromophobe renal cell carcinoma, papillary renal cell carcinoma, and Xp11.2 translocation renal cell carcinoma was statistically significant ( P<0.01). In addition, the multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that the independent risk factor for PFS in nccRCC patients is the invasion of the renal vein without venous wall involvement ( HR = 8.0, 95% CI 1.8-36.2, P<0.01). Conculsions:Compared to ccRCC, pT 3a nccRCC is more prone to lymph node metastasis. Among them, papillary renal cell carcinoma and Xp11.2 translocation renal cell carcinoma have a poorer prognosis, resulting in an overall lower survival period for pT 3a nccRCC patients. Among different pT 3a characteristics, invasion of the renal vein without invading the vein wall is an independent risk factor for PFS in nccRCC patients.