Topical Collection "Urological Cancer"

A topical collection in Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This collection belongs to the section "Cancer Therapy".

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Editors

Biocruces-Bizkaia Health Research Institute, 48903 Barakaldo, Spain
Interests: translational uropathology; pathological diagnosis; basic fundamentals of tumor biology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
1. Department of Pathology, San Giovanni Bosco Hospital, 10154 Turin, Italy
2. Department of Sciences of Public Health and Pediatrics, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy
Interests: urogenital and neurosurgical pathology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Topical Collection Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cancer of the urological sphere is a disease continuously growing in numbers in the statistics of tumor malignancies in Western countries. Although this fact is mainly due to the contemporary increase in the life expectancy of the people in these geographic areas, many other factors do also contribute to this growth. Urological cancer is a complex and varied disease of different organs and mainly affects the male population. In fact, kidney, prostate, and bladder cancer are regularly included in the top-ten list of the most frequent neoplasms in males in most statistics. The female population, however, has also increasingly found itself affected by renal and bladder cancer in the last decade. Considering these facts altogether, urological cancer is a problem of major concern in developed societies. This Topical Collection of Cancers intends to shed some light on the complexity of this field, and will consider all useful and appropriate contributions that scientists and clinicians may provide in order to improve urological cancer knowledge for patients’ benefit. The following paragraphs display only a partial view of this complexity.

Renal cancer is probably the best example of inter- and intra-tumor heterogeneity in oncology, and remains a hot topic for clinicians and researchers worldwide. A precise histological and molecular characterization of the papillary group of renal cancer and a better profiling of immunotherapy in clear cell renal cell carcinomas are two of the most challenging areas today.

Prostate cancer is also a polyhedral disease. The correct definition of the so-called clinically insignificant disease; the dilemma of choosing not only between active clinical surveillance versus the focal therapy, but also between radical surgery versus radical radiotherapy; the management of the oligometastatic patient; and the richness of the genomic and epigenomic events underlying this disease will attract the attention of many urologists, pathologists, and basic researchers.

Cancer of the urinary tract also needs a more precise definition, as well as the investigation of several key points. The precise identification of the molecular routes involved; the diagnostic pathological criteria in the grey zones; the dilemma of T1G3 management; and the possible treatment options between superficial, nonmuscle-invasive, and muscle-invasive diseases will be particularly welcomed in this Collection.

Germ cell tumors of the testes still remain a puzzling problem in terms of conceptual tumorigenesis, with several grey zones having an impact in clinics. Basic researchers will find the perfect ground to venture deep into the borderland between anaplastic seminoma and embryonal carcinoma, as well as other poorly understood issues.

Dr. José I. López
Dr. Claudia Manini
Collection Editors

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Published Papers (4 papers)

2023

Article
Utility of Patient-Reported Symptom and Functional Outcomes to Indicate Recovery after First 90 Days of Radical Cystectomy: A Longitudinal Study
Cancers 2023, 15(11), 3051; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers15113051 (registering DOI) - 04 Jun 2023
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Abstract
This is a longitudinal prospective study that tracked multiple symptom burden and functioning status for bladder cancer (BLC) patients for 3 months post-radical cystectomy at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, using a validated disease-specific patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) tool, the [...] Read more.
This is a longitudinal prospective study that tracked multiple symptom burden and functioning status for bladder cancer (BLC) patients for 3 months post-radical cystectomy at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, using a validated disease-specific patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) tool, the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory (the MDASI-PeriOp-BLC). The feasibility of collecting an objective measure for physical functioning, using “Timed Up & Go test” (TUGT) and PRO scores at baseline, discharge and end of study, was tested. Patients (n = 52) received care under an ERAS pathway. The more severe scores of fatigue, sleep disturbance, distress, drowsiness, frequent urination and urinary urgency at baseline predicted poor functional recovery postoperatively (OR = 1.661, 1.039–2.655, p = 0.034); other more severe symptoms at discharge (pain, fatigue, sleep disturbance, lack of appetite, drowsiness, bloating/abdominal tightness) predicted poor functional recovery (OR = 1.697, 1.114–2.584, p = 0.014) postoperatively. Compliance rates at preoperative, discharge and end of study were 100%, 79% and 77%, while TUGT completion rates were 88%, 54% and 13%, respectively. This prospective study found that more severe symptom burden at baseline and discharge is associated with poor functional recovery post-radical cystectomy for BLC. The collection of PROs is more feasible than using performance measures (TUGT) of function following radical cystectomy. Full article
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Article
Subsequent Upper Urinary Tract Carcinoma Related to Worse Survival in Patients Treated with BCG
Cancers 2023, 15(7), 2002; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers15072002 - 28 Mar 2023
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Abstract
Upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) after intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) therapy is rare, and its incidence, clinical impact, and risk factors are not fully understood. To elucidate the clinical implications of UTUC after intravesical BCG therapy, this retrospective cohort study used data [...] Read more.
Upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) after intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) therapy is rare, and its incidence, clinical impact, and risk factors are not fully understood. To elucidate the clinical implications of UTUC after intravesical BCG therapy, this retrospective cohort study used data collected between January 2000 and December 2019. A total of 3226 patients diagnosed with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) and treated with intravesical BCG therapy were enrolled (JUOG-UC 1901). UTUC impact was evaluated by comparing intravesical recurrence-free survival (RFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and overall survival (OS) rates. The predictors of UTUC after BCG treatment were assessed. Of these patients, 2873 with a medical history that checked UTUC were analyzed. UTUC was detected in 175 patients (6.1%) during the follow-up period. Patients with UTUC had worse survival rates than those without UTUC. Multivariate analyses revealed that tumor multiplicity (odds ratio [OR], 1.681; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.005–2.812; p = 0.048), Connaught strain (OR, 2.211; 95% CI, 1.380–3.543; p = 0.001), and intravesical recurrence (OR, 5.097; 95% CI, 3.225–8.056; p < 0.001) were associated with UTUC after BCG therapy. In conclusion, patients with subsequent UTUC had worse RFS, CSS, and OS than those without UTUC. Multiple bladder tumors, treatment for Connaught strain, and intravesical recurrence after BCG therapy may be predictive factors for subsequent UTUC diagnosis. Full article
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Review
Bispecific T-Cell Engagers Therapies in Solid Tumors: Focusing on Prostate Cancer
Cancers 2023, 15(5), 1412; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers15051412 - 23 Feb 2023
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Abstract
Over the past decade, immunotherapy has demonstrated an impressive improvement in treatment outcomes for multiple cancers. Following the landmark approvals for use of immune checkpoint inhibitors, new challenges emerged in various clinical settings. Not all tumor types harbor immunogenic characteristics capable of triggering [...] Read more.
Over the past decade, immunotherapy has demonstrated an impressive improvement in treatment outcomes for multiple cancers. Following the landmark approvals for use of immune checkpoint inhibitors, new challenges emerged in various clinical settings. Not all tumor types harbor immunogenic characteristics capable of triggering responses. Similarly, many tumors’ immune microenvironment allows them to become evasive, leading to resistance and, thus, limiting the durability of responses. To overcome this limitation, new T-cell redirecting strategies such as bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE) have become attractive and promising immunotherapies. Our review provides a comprehensive perspective of the current evidence of BiTE therapies in solid tumors. Considering that immunotherapy has shown modest results in advanced prostate cancer to date, we review the biologic rationale and promising results of BiTE therapy in this clinical setting and discuss potential tumor-associated antigens that may be integrated into BiTE construct designs. Our review also aims to evaluate the advances of BiTE therapies in prostate cancer, illustrate the major obstacles and underlying limitations, and discuss directions for future research. Full article
Article
Gene-Transcript Expression in Urine Supernatant and Urine Cell-Sediment Are Different but Equally Useful for Detecting Prostate Cancer
Cancers 2023, 15(3), 789; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers15030789 - 27 Jan 2023
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Abstract
There is considerable interest in urine as a non-invasive liquid biopsy to detect prostate cancer (PCa). PCa-specific transcripts such as the TMPRSS2:ERG fusion gene can be found in both urine extracellular vesicles (EVs) and urine cell-sediment (Cell) but the relative usefulness of these [...] Read more.
There is considerable interest in urine as a non-invasive liquid biopsy to detect prostate cancer (PCa). PCa-specific transcripts such as the TMPRSS2:ERG fusion gene can be found in both urine extracellular vesicles (EVs) and urine cell-sediment (Cell) but the relative usefulness of these and other genes in each fraction in PCa detection has not been fully elucidated. Urine samples from 76 men (PCa n = 40, non-cancer n = 36) were analysed by NanoString for 154 PCa-associated genes-probes, 11 tissue-specific, and six housekeeping. Comparison to qRT-PCR data for four genes (PCA3, OR51E2, FOLH1, and RPLP2) was strong (r = 0.51–0.95, Spearman p < 0.00001). Comparing EV to Cells, differential gene expression analysis found 57 gene-probes significantly more highly expressed in 100 ng of amplified cDNA products from the EV fraction, and 26 in Cells (p < 0.05; edgeR). Expression levels of prostate-specific genes (KLK2, KLK3) measured were ~20× higher in EVs, while PTPRC (white-blood Cells) was ~1000× higher in Cells. Boruta analysis identified 11 gene-probes as useful in detecting PCa: two were useful in both fractions (PCA3, HOXC6), five in EVs alone (GJB1, RPS10, TMPRSS2:ERG, ERG_Exons_4-5, HPN) and four from Cell (ERG_Exons_6-7, OR51E2, SPINK1, IMPDH2), suggesting that it is beneficial to fractionate whole urine prior to analysis. The five housekeeping genes were not significantly differentially expressed between PCa and non-cancer samples. Expression signatures from Cell, EV and combined data did not show evidence for one fraction providing superior information over the other. Full article
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