Surgery Versus Radiotherapy for Clinically-localized Prostate Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

AbstractContextTo date, there is no Level 1 evidence comparing the efficacy of radical prostatectomy and radiotherapy for patients with clinically-localized prostate cancer.ObjectiveTo conduct a meta-analysis assessing the overall and prostate cancer-specific mortality among patients treated with radical prostatectomy or radiotherapy for clinically-localized prostate cancer.Evidence acquisitionWe searched Medline, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library through June 2015 without year or language restriction, supplemented with hand search, using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis and Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology guidelines. We used multivariable adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) to assess each endpoint. Risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale.Evidence synthesisNineteen studies of low to moderate risk of bias were selected and up to 118 830 patients were pooled. Inclusion criteria and follow-up length varied between studies. Most studies assessed patients treated with external beam radiotherapy, although some included those treated with brachytherapy separately or with the external beam radiation therapy group. The risk of overall (10 studies, aHR 1.63, 95% confidence interval 1.54–1.73, p<0.00001; I2=0%) and prostate cancer-specific (15 studies, aHR 2.08, 95% confidence interval 1.76–2.47, p < 0.00001; I2=48%) mortality were higher for patients treated with radiotherapy compared with those treated with surgery. Subgroup analyses by risk group, radiation regimen, time period, and follow-up length did not alter the direction of results.ConclusionsRadiotherapy for prostate cancer is associated with an increased risk of overall and prostate cancer-specific mortality compared with surgery based on observational data with low to moderate risk of bias. These data, combined with the forthcoming randomized data, may aid clinical decision making.Patient summaryWe reviewed available studies assessing mortality after prostate cancer treatment with surgery or radiotherapy. While the studies used have a potential for bias due to their observational design, we demonstrated consistently higher mortality for patients treated with radiotherapy rather than surgery

Postoperative Discharge Destination Impacts 30-Day Outcomes: A National Surgical Quality Improvement Program Multi-Specialty Surgical Cohort Analysis

Surgical patients can be discharged to a variety of facilities which vary widely in intensity of care. Postoperative readmissions have been found to be more strongly associated with post-discharge events than pre-discharge complications, indicating the importance of discharge destination. We sought to evaluate the association between discharge destination and 30-day outcomes. A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database. Patients were dichotomized based on discharge destination: home versus non-home. The main outcome of interest was 30-day unplanned readmission. The secondary outcomes included post-discharge pulmonary, infectious, thromboembolic, and bleeding complications, as well as death. In this cohort study of over 1.5 million patients undergoing common surgical procedures across eight surgical specialties, we found non-home discharge to be associated with adverse 30-day post-operative outcomes, namely, unplanned readmissions, post-discharge pulmonary, infectious, thromboembolic, and bleeding complications, as well as death. Non-home discharge is associated with worse 30-day outcomes among patients undergoing common surgical procedures. Patients and caregivers should be counseled regarding discharge destination, as non-home discharge is associated with adverse post-operative outcomes

Feasibility of robotic radical prostatectomy for medication refractory chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome: Initial results

Four patients diagnosed with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), met criteria for National Institute of Health (NIH) Category III prostatitis, failed multiple medicinal treatments and underwent robotic radical prostatectomy (RRP). Median operative time (range): 157 (127–259) min. Validated functional questionnaires responses and NIH CP symptom index (NIH-CPSI) score were collected for each patient's status at different time points pre- and post-operatively. Median decreases (range) were: International Prostate Symptom Score - 14 (1–19); Sexual Health Inventory for Men - 6 (−14–22); and NIH-CPSI total - 23.5 (13–33). Median length of follow-up (range) was 34 (24–43) months. RRP appears to be an option for carefully selected patients with medication-refractory CP/CPPS who understand that baseline sexual function may not be restored postoperatively

Robot-Assisted Laparoscopic Resection of a Pelvic Schwannoma

There is minimal data within the literature demonstrating the use of robotics to resect pelvic, benign schwannoma(s). Herein, we describe a case of a 46-year-old transgender male that presented with complaints of left-sided pelvic pain. Pre-operatively, the etiology was unknown. The patient underwent robotic-assisted laparoscopic excision of the pelvic mass, including a 5–6 cm resection of the obturator nerve, successfully. Final pathology found a benign schwannoma. Schwannomas are difficult to diagnose pre- and intra-operatively and are thus frequently misdiagnosed as urologic or gynecologic lesions. This report demonstrates that robotics can be used safely to resect benign, pelvic schwannoma(s)

MP57-02 THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN PHYSICIAN TRUST AND PROSTATE SPECIFIC ANTIGEN SCREENING: IMPLICATIONS FOR SHARED DECISION MAKING

IntroductionShared decision-making is widely recommended when men are considering prostate cancer screening with prostate-specific antigen (PSA). The role of patients' trust in cancer information from their physician in such decisions is unknown.MethodsWe identified male respondents ≥18 years of age from the Health Information National Trends Survey, a population-based survey of people living in the U.S. (2011-014). We assessed the association between degree of trust in cancer information from respondent's physician with patient-reported receipt of PSA-screening and patient-reported discussion of PSA screening with their physician.ResultsAmong 5069 eligible respondents, 3606 (71.1%) men reported trusting cancer information from their physician "a lot," 1186 (23.4%) "somewhat," 219 (4.3%) "a little," and 58 (1.1%) "not at all." A total of 2655 (52.4%) men reported receiving PSA screening. The degree of trust an individual had in his physician for cancer information was strongly associated with his likelihood of having received PSA screening (ptrend&lt;0.0001) (54.9% "a lot" vs. 27.6% "not at all"). These findings persisted after multivariable regression. Similarly, men who had high levels of trust in their physician were more likely to have discussed PSA screening with a strong trend across strata (ptrend&lt;0.0001).ConclusionsThe level of trust an individual has in cancer information from his physician is strongly associated with his likelihood of discussing and undergoing PSA screening. As rationale, implementation of PSA screening requires shared decision-making, and the level of trust an individual has in his physician has important implications for dissemination of PSA screening guidelines

The association between physician trust and prostate-specific antigen screening: Implications for shared decision-making

IntroductionShared decision-making is widely recommended when men are considering prostate cancer screening with prostate-specific antigen (PSA). The role of patients' trust in cancer information from their physician in such decisions is unknown.MethodsWe identified male respondents ≥18 years of age from the Health Information National Trends Survey, a population-based survey of people living in the U.S. (2011-014). We assessed the association between degree of trust in cancer information from respondent's physician with patient-reported receipt of PSA-screening and patient-reported discussion of PSA screening with their physician.ResultsAmong 5069 eligible respondents, 3606 (71.1%) men reported trusting cancer information from their physician "a lot," 1186 (23.4%) "somewhat," 219 (4.3%) "a little," and 58 (1.1%) "not at all." A total of 2655 (52.4%) men reported receiving PSA screening. The degree of trust an individual had in his physician for cancer information was strongly associated with his likelihood of having received PSA screening (ptrend&lt;0.0001) (54.9% "a lot" vs. 27.6% "not at all"). These findings persisted after multivariable regression. Similarly, men who had high levels of trust in their physician were more likely to have discussed PSA screening with a strong trend across strata (ptrend&lt;0.0001).ConclusionsThe level of trust an individual has in cancer information from his physician is strongly associated with his likelihood of discussing and undergoing PSA screening. As rationale, implementation of PSA screening requires shared decision-making, and the level of trust an individual has in his physician has important implications for dissemination of PSA screening guidelines

Human kallikrein-2 gene and protein expression predicts prostate cancer at repeat biopsy

Abstract Purpose The human kallikrein-2 (hK2) protein and two single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) (rs2664155, rs198977) of the gene are associated with prostate cancer risk. We examined whether hK2 protein and gene SNPs predict prostate cancer at the time of repeat biopsy. Methods We prospectively offered a repeat biopsy to men with a negative prostate biopsy performed for a PSA >4.0 ng/mL or abnormal Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) between 2001–2005. We genotyped and measured serum hK2 levels in 941 men who underwent a repeat prostate biopsy. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the significance of KLK2 SNPs and hK2 levels for predicting cancer at repeat biopsy. Results Of the 941 patients, 180 (19.1%) were found to have cancer. The rs198977 SNP was positively associated with cancer at repeat biopsy (OR variant T allele = 1.8, 95% CI: 1.04-3.13, p = 0.049). When combined, the odds ratio for prostate cancer for patients with high hK2 levels and the variant T-allele of rs198977 was 3.77 (95% CI: 1.94-7.32, p < 0.0001), compared to patients with low hK2 levels and the C-allele. The addition of hK2 levels and KLK2 rs198977 to the baseline predictive model did not significantly increase the area under the curve from a baseline model of 0.67 to 0.69 (p = 0.6). Conclusions The KLK2 SNP rs198977 was positively associated with hK2 levels and predicts prostate cancer at the time of repeat prostate biopsy. Further characterization of the KLK2 gene will be needed to determine its clinical utility