Journal Reviews
Rectal swab testing before prostate biopsy
This study explored the real terms value of rectal swab testing and targeted antibiotic prophylaxis in patients undergoing transrectal ultrasound prostate biopsy in view of increasing bacterial resistance to fluoroquinolones (17.6% in North America, 40% in Hong Kong). The authors...
The potential of statin use in castrate resistant prostate cancer treatment
One of the mechanisms by which prostate cancer achieves castrate resistance is through de novo intratumoral production of androgens. Reactivation of androgen receptors results in promotion of cell survival and proliferation pathways despite castrate serum testosterone levels. As androgen synthesis...
Smoking and urological health
European Urology Focus is a new sister journal to European Urology. It is peer-reviewed and will be published six times per year in electronic format. The first issue deals with smoking and urological diseases. It makes for very interesting reading...
The importance of second-look transurethral resection for superficial bladder cancer
This was a prospective study of 100 consecutive patients with a newly diagnosed superficial bladder tumour who underwent a second look transurethral resection of bladder tumour (TURBT) two to six weeks post initial resection. This essentially included pTa multiple and...
RN or PN for small RCCs – the debate continues
This is a retrospective study to evaluate kidney function and overall survival (OS) in patients who underwent partial nephrectomy (PN) and radical nephrectomy (RN) for RCCs <4cm. They looked at 2110 patients who underwent RN/PN for T1a renal cell carcinomas...
Outcomes of renal cancer surgery on renal function and mortality on those with and without CKD
In urology we are encountering an ageing and more comorbid population, including a group of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). In this retrospective study, a group from the Cleveland Clinic present the extended follow-up of patients with and without...
Risk factors for CKD following treatment for RCC
This paper concerns the prevention of chronic kidney disease (CKD) following treatment for renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Over the last 10 years, partial nephrectomy has played an increasing role in the management of RCC, especially T1a disease. It has been...
How often are instruments changed in RALP & RAPN?
This study investigates how often the robotic instruments are exchanged during robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) and robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN). They presently come with a life span of 10 uses but whether all instruments are used fully on 10 different...
Importance of PSA variation – an analysis of PLCO trial data
This study looks specifically at the group of patients in the intervention arm of the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer Screening trial (PLCO), to investigate variations in prostate specific antigen (PSA) level. They have specifically included only patients who...
Metabolic syndrome and prostate cancer recurrence in a veterans’ cohort
This study explored the relationship between metabolic syndrome and localised prostate cancer recurrence in patients who had received active treatment (external beam radiation therapy – EBRT, radical retropubic prostatectomy – RRP, or brachytherapy). The definition of metabolic syndrome adopted was...
Activity of enzalutamide in men with mCRPC is affected by prior treatment with abiraterone and / or docetaxel
This study reported on the real-world clinical outcomes of patients at seven academic institutions who were treated with enzalutamide, with the primary objective being to assess the effect of prior therapies (namely abireterone and docetaxel). Three hundred and ten patients...
BCG maintenance therapy not superior to induction alone
With the ongoing shortage of BCG remaining an issue for urologists in the UK and further afield, this topical paper presented the results of the CUETO study evaluating the outcome of a modified three-year BCG maintenance regimen versus induction therapy...
