Vol 8, No 3 (2012)

The article represents the study of quality of life in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer stages T2b and T3a after surgery, depending on the operation type. The study was conducted using questionnaires EORTC QLQ-30 and FACT-BL. The best levels of quality of life were observed in patients after organ-saving treatment of muscle-invasive bladder cancer.

The growing incidence of prostate cancer (PC) and its variable nature are an important problem today. PC is distinguished by its latent ability in many cases, which makes its screening difficult.
Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is one of the most common tumor markers of PC, which are used for mass male screening. However, the detection rate of PC in men with normal PSA values is also very high. This promotes an active search for new markers and predictors of PC.
The effect of androgens on hormonal carcinogenesis in the prostate suggests that the analysis of serum testosterone concentrations and free androgen index may be made in patients with low PSA levels in the early diagnosis and prognosis of PC.

Background. Radical prostatectomy (RPE) is today the gold standard treatment option for locally advanced prostate cancer (PC). These operations are performed both openly and using video-assisted endosurgery. Since 2009, the Research Institute of Urology has been made 70 extraperitoneoscopic RPEs (ERPE).

Objective: to assess the complications of ERPE with the validated Clavien complication scale.

Materials and methods. The authors retrospectively analyzed the case histories of 70 patients with locally advanced PC who had undergone ERPE. The complications were allocated to 3 groups: intraoperative, early (within 1 month) and late (over 1 month) postoperative ones. All found complications were stratified using Clavien classification scale.

Results. The total number of ERPE complications accounted for 35.7%. The most common complications, such as anastomotic incompetence and blood loss that required hemotransfusion, were 9.8 and 11.3%, respectively. Rectal damage was intraoperatively found in 2 cases. Obturator nerve damage was also recognized intraoperatively and did not result in the occurrence of neurological symptoms. The severest complication (Clavien scale grade V) was pulmonary embolism causing death.

Conclusion. Postoperative complications of ERPE were observed in a small percentage of the patients and posed no serious threat to their life. The analysis of the complications of ERPE suggests that this treatment for locally advanced PC is a current safe and low-traumatic method.

Small cell carcinoma of the prostate is a rare and very aggressive tumor. Primary emphasis is laid on the morphological and immunohistochemical characteristics of this type of a tumor, the clinical presentations of the disease, performed treatment, and its response. Three clinical cases of small cell carcinoma of the prostate with their further discussion are described.

Objective: to study the possibilities of transrectal ultrasound scan (TRUS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in identifying and verifying a tumor lesion of intrapelvic lymph nodes (LN) in patients with biochemical recurrence after radical prostatectomy.

Subjects and methods. Metastatic tumor lesion of intrapelvic LNs was verified in 4 patients by transrectal ultrasound (US)-guided needle biopsies. All the patients underwent multi-parametric MRI studies and TRUS.

Results. The application of current MRI technologies (for qualitative and quantitative analysis of diffusion-weighted images and for postcontrast sequences) could detect and judge with confidence the metastatic lesion of intrapelvic LNs. TRUS permits clearly visualizing pathologically altered LNs, by taking into account their MRI pattern and verifying their tumor lesion by US-guided core needle biopsy.

Conclusion. The combined use of multi-parametric MRI and TRUS provides a means for diagnosing and verifying the tumor lesion of pelvic LNs in patients after prostatectomy.