Bladder Cancer

The immune checkpoint antibody pembrolizumab (Keytruda, Merck) improved survival in previously treated advanced urothelial cancer compared to chemotherapy, according to the manufacturer of the immunotherapy.

New immunotherapies that target PD-1 are now showing promise for first-line and second-line treatment of metastatic bladder cancer.

The gene known as β-Klotho (KLβ) appears to play an important role in tumor invasion and progression in patients with bladder cancer, and urine KLβ levels may act as a useful biomarker, according to a new study.

Investigators at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and Yale University are now reporting in the journal Cancer Cell on a new understanding of the cancer suppressing gene RhoDGI2 and how it may be involved in metastatic bladder cancer.

Patients with non-urothelial bladder cancer are more commonly upstaged during surgery compared with urothelial cancers.

A small genomic study of patients with chemoradiation-treated urothelial carcinoma of the bladder found similar mutation patterns between primary and recurrent tumors.

A novel urine-based DNA test was effective at detecting bladder cancer, and in particular at identifying patients with gross hematuria who do not require cystoscopy.

New NCCN guidelines regarding genomic profiling will likely yield important opportunities to improve the care of patients with advanced bladder cancer.

In this peer-to-peer discussion Dr. Grivas and Dr. Palmbos examine the role of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in bladder cancer and weigh the various trial data guiding these treatment decisions.

More research is needed to define the optimal radiotherapy and chemotherapy regimen for male urethral carcinoma. However, modern chemoradiation is a feasible treatment option for motivated men with urethral carcinoma who want to preserve their organs.

This article will review select novel targets and approaches relevant to urothelial cancer.

Since the development of first-line cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy with methotrexate, vinblastine, doxorubicin, and cisplatin almost 3 decades ago, there have not been major advances in the treatment of this disease.

After a thorough repeat TURBT, disease control can be achieved with intravesical BCG and a bladder-sparing approach.

Patients with T1 bladder cancer on re-resection achieve the best possible survival benefit by IRC and thorough pelvic lymph node dissection.

Nivolumab is safe and effective in patients with metastatic bladder cancer refractory to prior lines of platinum-based chemotherapy, according to findings from the open-label, phase I/II CheckMate 032 trial.

Results of the IMvigor210 clinical trial found that atezolizumab is effective in patients with locally advanced or metastatic cisplatin-ineligible urothelial carcinoma.

The higher incidence of bladder cancer in the Northeast in the last 50 years may be attributed to the presence of arsenic in the drinking water, according to a new study.

The FDA has granted accelerated approval to atezolizumab (Tecentriq) for the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma-the most common type of bladder cancer.

A new study found that FGFR3 mutation status could be used to guide anti-FGFR3 therapy in bladder cancer, as the mutation is homogeneous in radical cystectomy specimens and cancer-positive lymph nodes.

Afatinib showed significant activity in a phase II trial of patients with metastatic platinum-refractory urothelial carcinoma, and patients with HER2 or ERBB3 alterations had significantly better outcomes.

The diabetes drug pioglitazone was associated with an increased risk for bladder cancer among patients with type 2 diabetes, according to the results of a new study.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology endorsed the European Association of Urology’s treatment guideline on muscle-invasive and metastatic bladder cancer.

The US Food and Drug Administration has accepted the priority application for atezolizumab (MPDL3280A), an investigational targeted agent for patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma.

The addition of ramucirumab to docetaxel improved progression-free survival compared with docetaxel alone in a randomized phase II trial of patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma.

The emergence of immune checkpoint inhibitors as effective cancer immunotherapy has effectively built a new “highway” connecting the promise of oncologic translational research to progress in treating advanced malignancies.

An observational study found that adjuvant chemotherapy improves overall survival in patients with locally advanced bladder cancer.

Despite a high rate of hematologic toxicity, combined low-dose gemcitabine (Gemzar), paclitaxel, and sorafenib (Nexavar) showed promise as a well-tolerated salvage therapy in a small group of patients with cisplatin-resistant urothelial cancer.

An Egyptian study found that bladder cancer patients who underwent radical cystectomy had better local recurrence-free survival with adjuvant radiotherapy and chemotherapy combined, compared with chemotherapy alone.

The anti-PD-L1 antibody atezolizumab showed significantly improved objective response rates compared to historic controls in a phase II study of patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma previously treated with platinum-based therapy.

Comprehensive genomic profiling of patients with advanced urothelial carcinoma has revealed a very high frequency of clinically relevant genomic alterations.