Introduction

While neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) is recognized as the standard of care, the management of patients with locally advanced and/or nodal disease after NAC and radical cystectomy (RC) is not well defined. We sought to evaluate the association of adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) and overall survival (OS) among patients with adverse pathology after NAC and RC. _x000D_

Methods

The National Cancer Database was reviewed to identify patients with adverse pathology (pT3N0, pT4N0, or pTanyN1-3) at RC following NAC from 2006-2012. Patients were stratified by receipt of AC. Clinical and pathologic variables were abstracted. OS was the primary end-point and differences on the basis of AC receipt among all patients and as stratified by pathologic stage were assessed by the Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression was used to assess the association of AC with OS controlling for age, sex, race, Charlson score, year of diagnosis, pathologic stage, and receipt of adjuvant radiotherapy. _x000D_ _x000D_

Results

Adverse pathology following NAC and RC was identified in 1,361 patients from 2006-2012, of whom 328 (24.1%) received AC. Staging was pT3N0 in 444 (32.6%), pT4N0 in 162 (11.9%), and pTanyN1-3 in 755 (55.5%). Median OS for the entire cohort was 22.9 months, which differed by pathologic stage: 34.6 months (pT3N0), 21.4 months (pT4N0), and 19.3 months (pTanyN1-3)(p<0.01). No difference in OS was noted by receipt of AC in the overall cohort (median OS 24.6 months with AC vs 22.0 months without AC; p=0.18), or when stratified by pathologic stage. On multivariable analysis, receipt of AC was not significantly associated with overall mortality (HR 0.86; 95%CI 0.74-1.01; p=0.06) for all patients. When stratified by stage, AC was associated with a significantly decreased risk of mortality among patients with pT4N0 disease (HR 0.56; 95%CI 0.33-0.97; p=0.04), but not pT3N0 or pTanyN1-3 (p>0.05). _x000D_

Conclusions

Patients with adverse pathology at RC after NAC have a median OS of approximately 2 years. AC was not associated with improved survival, except in the subgroup with pT4N0 disease. Clinical trials with newer systemic therapies are warranted for patients in this setting.

Funding

None