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Improvements in chemistry, molecular biology, genetics, and bioinformatics have allowed broad use of transcriptomic profiling. Understanding the population of ribonucleic acid (RNA) transcripts can provide important clinical information relevant to kidney cancer care. This includes a better understanding of kidney cancer subtype and distinct clusters within these categories. RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) is typically done on a region within the tumor, which represents thousands to millions of heterogeneous cells and various components of the microenvironment. Computational tools can deconvolute these populations to provide insight into the microenvironment. Specific signatures of hypoxia, proliferation, angiogenesis and immune infiltration can predict response and survival. Prognostic signatures can risk stratify tumors to aid in identification of patients who might derive benefit from adjuvant therapy. As the cost of sequencing continues to decline and improved bioinformatic tools are developed, the barriers to clinical use of transcriptomic data continue to crumble. Here we review the current literature around the use of transcriptomics in kidney cancer diagnosis and management.

The incremental morbidity of lymph node dissection (LND) among men undergoing radical prostatectomy remains uncertain. We therefore evaluated the association of LND with perioperative morbidity among men undergoing minimally invasive radical prostatectomy (MIRP). We identified 29,012 men aged 35–89 who underwent MIRP from 2010–2015 in the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database, of whom 47% underwent concomitant LND. The associations of LND with 30-day perioperative morbidity and mortality were evaluated using logistic regression, adjusted for patient features. Median age at surgery was 63 (IQR 57, 67) years. There were statistically significant, but clinically insignificant, differences in several baseline characteristics stratified by performance of LND, including older age at surgery (p

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE:Pelvic lymph node dissection (LND) is an integral component of the surgical treatment of invasive urothelial carcinoma of the bladder. Although an extended surgical templ...

Prostate cancer management changed in recent times given the recommendation against prostate-specific antigen screening, adherence to active surveillance, and "cytoreductive" surgery. We hypothesized that radical prostatectomy (RP) findings changed as well. All consecutive RPs (n=1348) and first time prostate needle biopsies (n=1719) in a period of 9 years were reviewed. The cohort was separated into 3 groups: (1) from May 2006 to April 2009, (2) from May 2009 to April 2012, and (3) from May 2012 to April 2015. The number of RPs decreased 15% from 551 in group 1 to 476 in group 2 and decreased a further 35% to 311 in group 3. Pure Gleason 6 (grade group 1) decreased from 46% in group 1 to 24% in group 2 (P

OBJECTIVE: To improve visualization of upper tract urothelial carcinomas. Previous studies using the novel pH low insertion peptide (pHLIP) variant 3 (Var3) conjugated to indocyanine green (ICG) have demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity for imaging of bladder urothelial carcinoma. Here, we describe a novel approach for the imaging of upper tract urothelial carcinomas using ICG-Var3 pHLIP. METHODS: Twelve ex-vivo upper urinary tract specimens were irrigated with ICG-Var 3 pHLIP for 15 minutes and then examined using a white light laparoscopic camera followed by near infrared fluorescent (NIRF) imaging using a Stryker 1588 AIM imaging system. Standard histopathologic evaluation was performed and findings were correlated with white light and ICG-Var3 NIRF imaging. One patient who underwent radical nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma was used as a negative control. RESULTS: Nineteen lesions were identified on histopathologic evaluation in 10 patients, including 82% high-grade urothelial carcinoma and 18% low-grade urothelial carcinoma. Nineteen (100%) malignant lesions were identified using NIRF imaging, while 15 (78.9%) lesions were identified using conventional white light examination. The sensitivity of ICG-Var3 pHLIP NIRF imaging was 100% compared to 78.9% white light examination. Both modalities are 100% specific. Benign collecting systems and ureters did not show uptake of the pHLIP construct. CONCLUSION: In this feasibility study, the ICG-Var3 pHLIP imaging agent demonstrated superior diagnostic performance compared to conventional white light examination. While additional studies are required for validation and in-vivo translation, pHLIP-based imaging represents a promising tool to improve the evaluation and management of upper tract urothelial carcinoma. UROLOGY 139: 134–140, 2020.

A twenty-eight-year-old female with a history of suprapubic pain and recurrent urinary tract infections presents for urology referral with a kidney, ureter, and bladder radiograph showing a 4.4 cm bladder calculus and 6.5 cm distal left ureteral stone. She underwent effective cystolitholapaxy of the bladder stone. Endourologic attempt (left ureteroscopy) was unsuccessful because of ureteral stone burden. Findings at ureteroscopy revealed a duplicated system on the left with the lower pole moiety joining just proximal to the ureteral orifice. The stone was found to be in the upper pole moiety ureter. An open ureterolithotomy was performed with intraoperative ureteroscopic laser lithotripsy and common sheath ureteral reimplant. Furthermore, a previously placed stent was found to be encrusted at the time of the ureterolithotomy. Effective ureteroscopy and lasering were performed through the ureterotomy up to the renal pelvis of the upper pole ureter.

The role of lymph node dissection (LND) in the management of renal cell carcinoma has been controversial. Older studies provided initial support to a potential survival benefit in resection of lymph node metastases, and several predictive models were developed to identify patients with lymph node involvement. However, the only randomized trial on the subject did not report a survival benefit to LND in the nonmetastatic setting. Several studies have recently reexplored the therapeutic benefit of LND. In both nonmetastatic and metastatic settings, LND does not appear to be associated with a survival benefit. Moreover, it does not appear that LND confers a survival advantage to patients at increased risk of lymph node metastases, such as those with preoperative radiographic lymphadenopathy or across increasing probability of lymph node disease. Among patients with clinically isolated lymph node metastases, the majority develop disease progression following surgical resection, suggesting a high prevalence of occult systemic disease. Lymph node metastases appear to have prognostic value in both nonmetastatic and metastatic settings. LND may, therefore, have an increasingly important staging role in the management of renal cell carcinoma.

Kidney masses suspicious for malignancy are frequently detected by cross-sectional imaging; however, little is known about the burden of surgical treatment for tumors found to be benign following excision.We queried the National Inpatient Sample to identify records of individuals who received surgical treatment for renal neoplasms between 2004 and 2014. We characterized temporal treatment trends, patient demographics, treatment related complications, and charges.We identified 7,099 (8.5%) and 76,892 (91.5%) patients who were treated for benign and malignant tumors, respectively. Benign masses accounted for 14.8% of partial and 5.5% of radical nephrectomies. The rates of surgery for benign tumors have remained steady (P = 0.058). The frequency of inpatient death was higher in those with malignant disease (0.63% vs. 0.18%, P0.0001). Median length of stay was longer for individuals with malignant renal tumors (4.86 vs. 4.12 days, P0.0001). The total discharge bill adjusting for inflation for benign or malignant renal surgery increased each year (R8.5% of inpatient renal surgical admissions are performed for benign masses. There has been a trend toward decreased operative management for benign renal tumors over time. Surgical management remains a significant economic burden. Efforts to prospectively evaluate modalities for pretreatment identification should be further pursued.

The American Urological Association (AUA) guidelines recommend partial nephrectomy (PN) as the gold standard for treatment of small renal masses (SRMs). This study examines the change in utilization of partial and radical nephrectomies at teaching and nonteaching institutions from 2003 to 2012.The data sample for this study came from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Inpatient Sample from 2003 to 2012. International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision and Clinical Modification codes were used to identify patients undergoing PN and radical nephrectomy for renal masses limited to the renal parenchyma. Teaching hospitals were defined, but not limited to any institution with an American Medical Association-approved residency program. Linear regression, bivariate, multivariate, and odds ratio analysis were used to demonstrate statistical significance.39,685 patients were identified in teaching hospitals, and 22,239 were identified in nonteaching hospitals. Prior to the 2009 AUA guidelines, cumulative rates of PN were 33% vs 20% in teaching vs nonteaching hospitals (p 0.0001) compared with postguideline rates of 48% vs 33% in teaching vs nonteaching hospitals (p 0.0001).During the 10-year study period, the use of PN to treat SRMs has significantly increased in both teaching hospitals and in nonacademic centers; however, these changes are occurring at a slower rate in nonteaching hospitals.

e16126Background: Subclassificaiton of papillary RCC (pRCC) into type 1 and type 2 has been recognized as an independent negative prognostic factor. Little investigation has determined the effect o...

Sarcoma represents a class of tumors arising from mesenchymal tissue. New approaches that target sarcoma-specific molecular alterations hold a promise of more effective therapies. Currently available sarcoma models do not accurately resemble relevant properties of the human disease and very often are inadequate for predicting the efficacy of investigational drugs in preclinical settings. Thus, in order to test novel targeted therapies, it is essential to develop in vivo models of sarcomas. To this end, we have created a panel of well-characterized xenografts of primary human sarcomas that represent a spectrum of histotypes. Specifically, we transplanted intact human sarcomas under the skin of immunodeficient mice. We then compared the morphologic, phenotypic, and genetic characteristics of the tumor tissues before and after implantation in recipient mice. To date, we have implanted into Nu/Nu recipients tumor tissue fragments from 32 gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) 10 dedifferentiated liposarcomas and 6 leiomyosarcomas. Successful tumor growth was detected in 86% cases of GIST, 44% of liposarcomas and 33% of leiomyosarcomas. Upon serial transplantation, 35% of GISTs, 44% of liposarcomas and 33% of leiomyosarcomas have grown beyond passage F3. Histological analysis of the primary tumors and corresponding xenografts revealed that morphology and immunophenotype (c-Kit status for GISTs, MDM2 for liposarcomas, Smooth Muscle Actin for leiomyosarcomas) was retained throughout all passages. Moreover, all major genetic abnormalities present in the primary tumors were retained in the xenografts, as revealed by genome-wide Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) array analyses. Our results show that this approach can be used to generate animal models that faithfully reproduce characteristics of human intact tumors. These models can be used for in vivo preclinical drug testing, diagnostic and prognostic molecular markers discovery, and for identification of molecular mechanisms of drug resistance. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 4197.