Giovanni Cordima

Predicting Pathological Features at Radical Prostatectomy in Patients with Prostate Cancer Eligible for Active Surveillance by Multiparametric Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Purpose The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic performance of multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) and Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System (PIRADS) score in predicting pathologic features in a cohort of patients eligible for active surveillance who underwent radical prostatectomy. Methods A total of 223 patients who fulfilled the criteria for “Prostate Cancer Research International: Active Surveillance”, were included. Mp–1.5 Tesla MRI examination staging with endorectal coil was performed at least 6–8 weeks after TRUS-guided biopsy. In all patients, the likelihood of the presence of cancer was assigned using PIRADS score between 1 and 5. Outcomes of interest were: Gleason score upgrading, extra capsular extension (ECE), unfavorable prognosis (occurrence of both upgrading and ECE), large tumor volume (≥0.5ml), and seminal vesicle invasion (SVI). Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves and Decision Curve Analyses (DCA) were performed for models with and without inclusion of PIRADS score. Results Multivariate analysis demonstrated the association of PIRADS score with upgrading (P<0.0001), ECE (P<0.0001), unfavorable prognosis (P<0.0001), and large tumor volume (P = 0.002). ROC curves and DCA showed that models including PIRADS score resulted in greater net benefit for almost all the outcomes of interest, with the only exception of SVI. Conclusions mpMRI and PIRADS scoring are feasible tools in clinical setting and could be used as decision-support systems for a more accurate selection of patients eligible for AS.

Body mass index was associated with upstaging and upgrading in patients with low-risk prostate cancer who met the inclusion criteria for active surveillance

BACKGROUND Obesity is associated with an increased risk of high-grade prostate cancer (PCa). The effect of body mass index (BMI) as a predictor of progression in men with low-risk PCa has been only poorly assessed. In this study, we evaluated the association of BMI with progression in patients with low-risk PCa who met the inclusion criteria for the active surveillance (AS) protocol. METHODS We assessed 311 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy and were eligible for AS according to the following criteria: clinical stage T2a or less, prostate-specific antigen level < 10 ng/ml, 2 or fewer cores involved with cancer, Gleason score ≤ 6 grade, and prostate-specific antigen density < 0.2 ng/ml/cc. Reclassification was defined as upstaged (pathological stage > pT2) and upgraded (Gleason score ≥ 7; primary Gleason pattern 4) disease. Seminal vesicle invasion, positive lymph nodes, and tumor volume ≥ 0.5 ml were also recorded. RESULTS We found that high BMI was significantly associated with upgrading, upstaging, and seminal vesicle invasion, whereas it was not associated with positive lymph nodes or large tumor volume. At multivariate analysis, 1 unit increase of BMI significantly increased the risk of upgrading, upstaging, seminal vesicle invasion, and any outcome by 21%, 23%, 27%, and 20%, respectively. The differences between areas under the receiver operating characteristics curves comparing models with and without BMI were statistically significant for upgrading (P = 0.0002), upstaging (P = 0.0007), and any outcome (P = 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS BMI should be a selection criterion for inclusion of patients with low-risk PCa in AS programs. Our results support the idea that obesity is associated with worse prognosis and suggest that a close AS program is an appropriate treatment option for obese subjects.

Multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging and frozen-section analysis efficiently predict upgrading, upstaging, and extraprostatic extension in patients undergoing nerve-sparing robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy.

AbstractTo evaluate the role of multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) in predicting upgrading, upstaging, and extraprostatic extension in patients with low-risk prostate cancer (PCa). MpMRI may reduce positive surgical margins (PSM) and improve nerve-sparing during robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) for localized prostate cancer PCa.This was a retrospective, monocentric, observational study. We retrieved the records of patients undergoing RARP from January 2012 to December 2013 at our Institution. Inclusion criteria were: PSA <10 ng/mL; clinical stage <T3a; biopsy Gleason score <7; prostate mpMRI performed preoperatively at our Institution; intraoperative FSA of the posterolateral aspects of the specimen.All the identified lesions were scored according to the Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System (PIRADS). We considered the lesion with the highest PIRADS score as index lesion. All the included patients underwent nerve-sparing RARP. During surgery, the specimen was sent for FSA of the posterolateral aspects. The surgeon, according to the localization scheme provided by the mpMRI, inked the region of the posterolateral aspect of the prostate that had to be submitted to FSA.We evaluated association between clinical features and PSM, upgrading, upstaging, and presence of unfavorable disease.Two hundred fifty-four patients who underwent nerve-sparing RARP were included. PSM rate was 29.13% and 15.75% at FSA and final pathology respectively. Interestingly, the use of FSA reduced PSM rate in pT3 disease (25.81%). Higher PIRADS scores demonstrated to be related to high probability of upgrading and upstaging. This significativity remains even when considering PIRADS 2–3 versus 4 versus 5 and PIRADS 2–3 versus 4–5. Also PSM at FSA were associated with higher probability of upgrading and upstaging.PIRADS score and FSA resulted to be strictly related to grading and staging, thus being able to predict upgrading and/or upstaging at final pathology.

Virtue male sling for post-prostatectomy stress incontinence: A prospective evaluation and mid-term outcomes

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of the Virtue® male sling (Coloplast, Humlebaek, Denmark) in a cohort of patients affected by post‐prostatectomy stress urinary incontinence (SUI).

Outcomes of robot-assisted simple enucleation of renal masses: A single European center experience

Abstract The aim of this study was to assess the ability of pre-and intraoperative parameters, to predict the risk of perioperative complications after robot-assisted laparoscopic simple enucleation (RASE) of renal masses, and to evaluate the rate of trifecta achievement of this approach stratifying the cohort according to the use of ischemia during the enucleation. From April 2009 to June 2016, 129 patients underwent RASE at our Institution. We stratified the procedures in 2 groups: clamping and clamp-less RASE. After RASE, all specimens were retrospectively reviewed to assess the surface–intermediate–base (SIB) scoring system. Patients were followed-up according to the European Association of Urology guidelines recommendations. All pre-, intra-, and postoperative outcomes were prospectively collected in a customized database and retrospectively analyzed. A total of 112 (86.8%) patients underwent a pure RASE and 17 (13.2%) had a hybrid according to SIB classification system. The mean age was 61.17 years. In 21 patients (16.3%), complications occurred, 13 (61.9%) were Clavien 1 and 2, while 8 were Clavien 3a and b complications. Statistical significant association with complications was found in patients with American Society of Anestesiology (ASA) score 3 (44.5%, P = .04), longer mean operative time (OT) 195 versus 161.36 minutes (P =.03), mean postoperative hemoglobin (Hb) 10.1 versus 11.8 (P <.001), and mean &Dgr;Hb 3.59 versus 2.18 (P <.001). In multivariate logistic regression, only longer OT and &Dgr;Hb were statistical significant predictive factors for complications. In sub-group analysis, clamp-less RASE was safe in terms of complications (14.1%), positive surgical margins (1.3%), and mid-term local recurrence (1.3%). Although in this approach there is higher EBL (P = .01), this had no impact on &Dgr;Hb (P = .28). A clamp-less approach was associated with a higher rate of SIB 0 (71.8% vs 51%, P = .02), higher trifecta achievement (84.6% vs 62.7%, P = .004), and better impact on serum creatinine (mean 0.83 vs 0.91, P = .01). RASE of renal tumors is a safe technique with very good postoperative outcomes. Complication rate is low and associated with ASA score >3, longer OT, and &Dgr;Hb. RASE is suitable for the clamp-less approach, which allows to perform easier the pure enucleation (SIB 0) and to obtain higher rates of trifecta outcomes.

Meta-analysis of studies comparing oncologic outcomes of radical prostatectomy and brachytherapy for localized prostate cancer

Background: The aim of this study was to compare oncologic outcomes of radical prostatectomy (RP) with brachytherapy (BT). Methods: A literature review was conducted according to the ‘Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses’ (PRISMA) statement. We included studies reporting comparative oncologic outcomes of RP versus BT for localized prostate cancer (PCa). From each comparative study, we extracted the study design, the number and features of the included patients, and the oncologic outcomes expressed as all-cause mortality (ACM), PCa-specific mortality (PCSM) or, when the former were unavailable, as biochemical recurrence (BCR). All of the data retrieved from the selected studies were recorded in an electronic database. Cumulative analysis was conducted using the Review Manager version 5.3 software, designed for composing Cochrane Reviews (Cochrane Collaboration, Oxford, UK). Statistical heterogeneity was tested using the Chi-square test. Results: Our cumulative analysis did not show any significant difference in terms of BCR, ACM or PCSM rates between the RP and BT cohorts. Only three studies reported risk-stratified outcomes of intermediate- and high-risk patients, which are the most prone to treatment failure. Conclusions: our analysis suggested that RP and BT may have similar oncologic outcomes. However, the analysis included a limited number of studies, and most of them were retrospective, making it impossible to derive any definitive conclusion, especially for intermediate- and high-risk patients. In this scenario, appropriate urologic counseling remains of utmost importance.