Neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radical cystectomy in patients with bladder cancer

Background. Bladder cancer is the ninth most common malignant neoplasm worldwide. Hidden metastases at the time of diagnosis are the main reason muscle-invasive bladder cancer has poor prognosis. Even after radical cystectomy, muscleinvasive bladder cancer mostly progresses within 2 years with a recurrence rate of over 50 %. At stages II–IV of the disease, drug treatment is indicated before radical cystectomy. The main goal of neoadjuvant chemotherapy is to affect micrometastases, which may be present at the beginning of disease development. The response to ongoing chemotherapy can serve as a predictor of long-term survival.

Aim. To increase effectiveness of bladder cancer treatment.

Materials and methods. A total of 231 patients with bladder cancer were included in the study. The main contingent consisted of men over 60 years old with locally advanced tumors at stage Т2–Т4. Drug therapy was carried out in neoadjuvant mode before surgical treatment. Standard regimens were used: cisplatin + gemcitabine and MVAC (methotrexate, vinblastine, adriamycin, cisplatin). After four courses of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the results were evaluated. With complete normalization of a patient’s condition, the issue of surgical treatment – radical cystectomy with one of the types of urinary diversion – was decided.

Results and conclusion. The follow-up period for patients after treatment was 62 months. In patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the median overall survival was 44.9 months, in patients without neoadjuvant treatment – 36.8 months with improvement in recurrence-free survival from 32.5 to 39.8 months (p = 0.08). Overall survival after neoadjuvant chemotherapy improved by 8.1 months (p = 0.09).

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