Search

Abstract Objective The aim of this study is to evaluate treatment patterns and long‐term oncological outcomes of patients with locally advanced prostate cancer (LAPCa). Patients and methods This is a population‐based study including LAPC (cT3‐4, M0) patients from the Stockholm region (Sweden). A sub‐analysis was performed in men treated with primary cystoprostatectomy or total pelvic exenteration (TPE) for cT4 prostate cancer (PCa). Cox regression was used to identify predictors of overall mortality (OM) and cancer‐specific mortality (CSM). Biochemical progression‐free survival (BPFS) and 90 days complications were reported for the radical surgery subgroup. Results We included 2921 patients with cT3(N = 2713) or cT4(N = 208), M0 PCa diagnosed between 2003 and 2019. Out of these, 249(9%), 1497(51%) and 1175(40%) underwent radical prostatectomy, RT + ADT and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), respectively. Survival rates were 76% (IQR: 68, 83), 47% (IQR: 44, 50) and 23% (IQR: 20, 27), respectively at 10 years. Irrespective of treatment modalities, cT4 patients had worse survival compared to cT3 patients (OM: HR1.44, IQR:1.17,1.77; PCSM: HR1.39, IQR:1.06,1.82). Twenty‐seven patients with cT4, N0‐1, M0 were treated with cystoprostatectomy or TPE. Twenty‐two patients (81.5%) received neoadjuvant ADT. The 5‐year BPFS, CSS and OS rates were 39.6%, 68.8% and 63.8%, respectively. Nine patients (33.3%) had Clavien‐Dindo grade III and 1 (3.7%) grade IV complication within 90 days after surgery. Conclusions Pelvic surgery with radical intent as part of a multidisciplinary management may be an effective alternative for selected patients with locally advanced PCa leading to local tumour control and an acceptable morbidity.

Background and objective: Prostate cancer (PC) is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality in men worldwide. Opportunistic testing with prostate-specific antigen (PSA) has limited impact on PC mortality. Our objective was to assess prediagnostic PSA testing patterns and clinical characteristics at diagnosis in men with lethal PC. Methods: We conducted a population-based observational study of all men dying from PC in Stockholm County, Sweden, from 2015 to 2019. Data were retrieved from the National Prostate Cancer Register and the Stockholm PSA and Biopsy Register. If the first PSA was registered within 1 yr before diagnosis, men were categorised as PSA naïve. If an elevated PSA level was registered >1 yr before diagnosis without leading to prostate biopsy or repeating PSA within 1 yr, men were categorised as having delayed diagnosis. If a normal PSA level was registered within 5 yr before diagnosis, followed by an elevated PSA level that resulted in PC diagnosis within 1 yr, men were categorised as PSA tested. Clinical characteristics at diagnosis were stratified with D’Amico risk group classification. Key findings and limitations: Among 1473 men dying from PC, PSA test history was available for 995. Of these men, 60% (n = 592) were PSA naïve, 25% (n = 250) received delayed diagnosis, and 15% (n = 153) were PSA tested. After examining all 1473 men, 25% (n = 350) were diagnosed with low- or intermediate-risk cancer, 48% (n = 687) with high-risk cancer, and 27% (n = 385) with metastatic disease. Limitations include the retrospective design. Conclusions and clinical implications: Many men with lethal PC lacked PSA testing before diagnosis or had been tested without subsequent follow-up. Nearly half of the study population was diagnosed with high-risk cancer and almost one-third with metastatic disease. These findings suggest further evaluation of the current opportunistic PSA testing approach. Patient summary: Data from a population-based observational study of men dying from prostate cancer showed that many of them did not undergo either prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing before diagnosis or subsequent follow-up if tested. These findings implicate deficiencies in the current opportunistic PSA testing approach.

Prostate cancer screening using prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing is controversial but remains prevalent in many countries. There is little information in Sweden or elsewhere on the spatial variation in PSA testing. This study aims to describe the spatio-temporal variation in PSA testing prior to a prostate cancer diagnosis in the Stockholm region at the municipality and small area levels. A population-based register study comprised men aged 40 years and over living in the Stockholm region during 2007-2016. For Stockholm in 2016, we reported the proportion of men who had a PSA test for the preceding one, two, five and ten years by ten-year age groups. The age-standardised proportion of men having a PSA test was reported for municipalities by calendar years. We used spatial smoothing for calculating the age-standardised proportion of men having a PSA test in a small area for each calendar year. In 2016, 74.0% and 77.8% of men aged 60-69 and 70-79 years respectively had taken a PSA test in the previous ten years. The municipalities of Danderyd and Ekerö showed high proportions of PSA testing. A marked heterogeneity in such proportions within each municipality was observed. The odds ratio for having a PSA test for those born in Sweden was 2.22 (95% CI 2.00-2.52). Opportunistic PSA testing is widespread with three quarters of men in their sixties and seventies having had a test in the preceding decade. We found evidence for marked geographical heterogeneity, where more affluent and metropolitan areas had higher levels of testing. Variations in PSA testing was associated with socio-economic position and demographic factors including education, income and country of birth.

The aim of focal treatments (FTs) in prostate cancer (PCa) is to treat lesions while preserving surrounding benign tissue and anatomic structures. Irreversible electroporation (IRE) is a nonthermal technique that uses high-voltage electric pulses to increase membrane permeability and induce membrane disruption in cells, which potentially causes less damage to the surrounding tissue in comparison to other ablative techniques. We summarize the study protocol for the Prostate Cancer IRE Study (PRIS), which involves two parallel randomized controlled trials comparing IRE with (1) robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) or (2) radiotherapy in men with newly diagnosed intermediate-risk PCa (NCT05513443). To reduce the number of patients for inclusion and the study duration, the primary outcomes are functional outcomes: urinary incontinence in study 1 and irritative urinary symptoms in study 2. Providing evidence of the lower impact of IRE on functional outcomes will lay a foundation for the design of future multicenter studies with an oncological outcome as the primary endpoint. Erectile function, quality of life, treatment failure, adverse events, and cost effectiveness will be evaluated as secondary objectives. Patients diagnosed with Gleason score 3 + 4 or 4 + 3 PCa from a single lesion visible on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) without any Gleason grade 4 or higher in systematic biopsies outside of the target (unifocal significant disease), aged ≥40 yr, with no established extraprostatic extension on multiparametric MRI, a lesion volume of

Aims: To compare the oncological outcomes of patients with high-risk localized prostate cancer undergoing nerve-sparing and non-nerve-sparing robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP). Methods: Between November 2002 and December 2018, we prospectively recorded the data of patients undergoing RARP for high-risk localized prostate cancer (PCa) at our tertiary referral center. NSS (nerve-sparing surgery) was carefully offered on the basis of the preoperative clinical characteristics of the patients and an intraoperative assessment. The patients were stratified into two groups: nerve-sparing and non-nerve-sparing groups (yes/no). Radical prostatectomies were performed by 10 surgeons with a robot-assisted technique using a daVinci® surgical system. The primary oncological outcome evaluated was biochemical recurrence (BCR). The secondary oncological outcomes assessed were positive surgical margins (PSMs) and cancer-specific survival (CSS). Results: A total of 779 patients were included in the study: 429 (55.1%) underwent NSS while 350 (44.9%) underwent non-NSS. After a mean (±SD) follow-up of 192 (±14) months, 328 (42.1%) patients developed BCR; no significant difference was found between the NSS and non-NSS groups (156 vs. 172; p = 0.09). Both our univariable and multivariable analyses found that the nerve-sparing approach was not a predictor of BCR (p > 0.05). Kaplan–Mayer survival curves for BCR showed no significant difference among the non-NSS, unilateral NSS, and bilateral NSS groups (log rank test = 0.6). PSMs were reported after RARPs for 254 (32.6%) patients, with no significant difference between the NSS and non-NSS group (143 vs. 111; p = 0.5). In the subgroup of 15 patients who died during the follow-up period, mean (±SD) CSS was 70.5 (±26.1) months, with no significant difference between the NSS and non-NSS groups (mean CSS: 70.3 vs. 70.7 months). Conclusions: NSS does not appear to negatively impact the oncological outcomes of patients with high-risk PCa. Randomized clinical trials are needed to confirm our promising findings.

Background: Pathological digital rectal examination (DRE) is suggestive of prostate cancer but has low sensitivity and specificity. DRE is incorporated in many clinical risk calculators, but there is less evidence on how DRE performs in the setting of blood biomarkers and polygenic risk prediction models other than prostate-specific antigen (PSA) associated with prostate cancer. The Stockholm3 test combines a blood test and clinical variables including DRE. Objective: To assess the predictive performance of DRE for finding clinically significant prostate cancer in systematic biopsy and evaluate its added value to the multivariable diagnostic test Stockholm3. Design, setting, and participants: This population-based study in the screening by invitation setting included 5543 men aged 50–69 yr with PSA ≥3 ng/ml who were referred for systematic prostate biopsy between 2012 and 2015. The STHLM3 study is registered with ISRCTN.com as ISRCTN84445406. Outcome measurements and statistical analysis: Predictive performance was assessed via estimates of sensitivity and specificity and in logistic regression. Clinically significant cancer was defined as International Society of Urological Pathology grade group ≥2 (GG ≥2) cancer on systematic biopsy. Results and limitations: We found that 11% of men with PSA ≥3 ng/ml had a suspicious DRE. A suspicious DRE was associated with a 3.16-fold higher risk (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.83–3.52) of GG ≥2 cancer and greater length of cancer on biopsy. The risk of nonsignificant cancer was similar regardless of the DRE finding. The risk of GG ≥2 cancer was 46.2% (95% CI 42.2–50.3%) for men with a suspicious DRE versus 14.6% (95% CI 13.7–15.7%) for men with a negative DRE. The elevated risk of GG ≥2 cancer persisted after adjusting for the other Stockholm3 test parameters (odds ratio 2.88, 95% CI 2.32–3.57). For detection of GG ≥2 cancer among men with PSA ≥3 ng/ml, DRE had sensitivity of 27.8% (95% CI 25.1–30.7%) and specificity of 92.8% (95% CI 92.1–93.6%). Conclusions: In this screening-by-invitation setting we found that for men with PSA ≥3 ng/ml, a suspicious DRE indicates more than threefold higher risk of harboring significant prostate cancer. DRE as a variable adds significant precision to the Stockholm3 prediction model. Men with a suspicious DRE should be referred for further diagnostic workup, including biopsy. Patient summary: We investigated the ability of digital rectal examination to predict if a patient has clinically significant prostate cancer. We found that digital rectal examination provides valuable information and can help doctors in making an informed decision on whether to recommend prostate biopsy.

Background: The European Association of Urology guidelines recommend the use of imaging, biomarkers, and risk calculators in men at risk of prostate cancer. Risk predictive calculators that combine multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging with prebiopsy variables aid as an individualized decision-making tool for patients at risk of prostate cancer, and advanced neural networking increases reliability of these tools. Objective: To develop a comprehensive risk predictive online web-based tool using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and clinical data, to predict the risk of any prostate cancer (PCa) and clinically significant PCa (csPCa) applicable to biopsy-naïve men, men with a prior negative biopsy, men with prior positive low-grade cancer, and men with negative MRI. Design, setting, and participants: Institutional review board–approved prospective data of 1902 men undergoing biopsy from October 2013 to September 2021 at Mount Sinai were collected. Outcome measurements and statistical analysis: Univariable and multivariable analyses were used to evaluate clinical variables such as age, race, digital rectal examination, family history, prostate-specific antigen (PSA), biopsy status, Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System score, and prostate volume, which emerged as predictors for any PCa and csPCa. Binary logistic regression was performed to study the probability. Validation was performed with advanced neural networking (ANN), multi-institutional European cohort (Prostate MRI Outcome Database [PROMOD]), and European Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer Risk Calculator (ERSPC RC) 3/4. Results and limitations: Overall, 2363 biopsies had complete clinical information, with 57.98% any cancer and 31.40% csPCa. The prediction model was significantly associated with both any PCa and csPCa having an area under the curve (AUC) of 81.9% including clinical data. The AUC for external validation was calculated in PROMOD, ERSPC RC, and ANN for any PCa (0.82 vs 0.70 vs 0.90) and csPCa (0.82 vs 0.78 vs 0.92), respectively. This study is limited by its retrospective design and overestimation of csPCa in the PROMOD cohort. Conclusions: The Mount Sinai Prebiopsy Risk Calculator combines PSA, imaging and clinical data to predict the risk of any PCa and csPCa for all patient settings. With accurate validation results in a large European cohort, ERSPC RC, and ANN, it exhibits its efficiency and applicability in a more generalized population. This calculator is available online in the form of a free web-based tool that can aid clinicians in better patients counseling and treatment decision-making. Patient summary: We developed the Mount Sinai Prebiopsy Risk Calculator (MSP-RC) to assess the likelihood of any prostate cancer and clinically significant disease based on a combination of clinical and imaging characteristics. MSP-RC is applicable to all patient settings and accessible online.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic exploits existing inequalities in the social determinants of health (SDOH) that influence disease burden and access to healthcare. The role of health behaviours and socioeconomic status in genitourinary (GU) malignancy has also been highlighted. Our aim was to evaluate predictors of patient-level and neighbourhood-level factors contributing to disparities in COVID-19 outcomes in GU cancer patients. Methods: Demographic information and co-morbidities for patients screened for COVID-19 across the Mount Sinai Health System (MSHS) up to 10 June 2020 were included. Descriptive analyses and ensemble feature selection were performed to describe the relationships between these predictors and the outcomes of positive SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test, COVID-19-related hospitalisation, intubation and death. Results: Out of 47,379 tested individuals, 1094 had a history of GU cancer diagnosis; of these, 192 tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Ensemble feature selection identified social determinants including zip code, race/ethnicity, age, smoking status and English as the preferred first language—being the majority of significant predictors for each of this study’s four COVID-19-related outcomes: a positive test, hospitalisation, intubation and death. Patient and neighbourhood level SDOH including zip code/ NYC borough, age, race/ethnicity, smoking status, and English as preferred language are amongst the most significant predictors of these clinically relevant outcomes for COVID-19 patients. Conclusion: Our results highlight the importance of these SDOH and the need to integrate SDOH in patient electronic medical records (EMR) with the goal to identify at-risk groups. This study’s results have implications for COVID-19 research priorities, public health goals, and policy implementations.