Bladder Cancer COE

Tumour Factors and the Variation in Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer Recurrence After Transurethral Resection Surgery Between Sites: Results from the RESECT Study - Kevin Gallagher

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Zach Klaassen and Kevin Gallagher discuss the RESECT study. RESECT, a global research initiative across five continents and over 200 hospitals, aims to improve the quality of Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumor (TURBT) surgery and reduce early recurrence rates. Funded in 2020 and launched in late 2020-early 2021, the study utilizes social media marketing and is run on a low budget. It include...

Radical Cystectomy vs. Trimodal Therapy: Outcomes in Bladder Cancer - Alexandre Zlotta

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Ashish Kamat converses with Alexandre Zlotta on his study comparing radical cystectomy and trimodal therapy (TMT) for muscle-invasive bladder cancer. Dr. Zlotta highlights the evolving treatment paradigm towards organ preservation with TMT, a method combining limited resection and chemoradiation. Despite the mounting evidence for TMT, it is typically reserved for patients ineligible for surgery. D...

Extended Node Dissection in Bladder Cancer: SWOG S1011 Trial Insights - Seth Lerner

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Seth Lerner presents the results of a SWOG-led Phase III surgical trial (SWOG S1011) investigating the anatomic extent of node dissection during radical cystectomy for curable muscle invasive bladder cancer. The primary goal was to compare disease-free survival (DFS) in patients undergoing cystectomy, contrasting an extended node dissection with standard pelvic lymphadenectomy. After a median six...

Diversity and Excellence: The Key Criteria in BCAN's Travel Fellowship Selection Process - Max Kates & Petros Grivas

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Ashish Kamat welcomes Max Kates and Petros Grivas, the chair and incoming chair of the review committee for BCAN's Travel Fellowship. Dr. Grivas explains that the committee had an extremely difficult task this year due to the high-quality applications they received, which showcased talented fellows, residents, and their remarkable mentors. He also highlights the structured selection process that t...

Mental Health Illness in Patients with Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer. Does BCG Play a Role? - Valentina Grajales

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In this discussion, Ruchika Talwar spotlights the crucial research of Valentina Grajales. Driven by a personal experience with her father's prostate cancer diagnosis and consequent depression, Dr. Grajales explores the incidence of mental health illness in non-muscle invasive bladder cancer patients. Her research, using the SEER-Medicare dataset, found a reduced incidence of mental health issues i...

Expression-Based Subtypes Define Pathologic Response to Neoadjuvant Immune-Checkpoint Inhibitors in Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer - Joshua Meeks

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Ashish Kamat invites Joshua Meeks to discuss his ground-breaking research on immunotherapy for bladder cancer. Dr. Meeks sheds light on his work in identifying genotypes and phenotypes that impact patient response, drawing insights from the significant PURE-01 and ABACUS studies. His team discovers variations in tumor microenvironments and cells that may influence drug activity, suggesting that sp...

Reflecting on the 25-Year History of the International Bladder Cancer Network - Peter Goebell

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Ashish Kamat welcomes Peter Goebell to discuss the 25-year trajectory of the International Bladder Cancer Network (IBCN). Tracing the organization's evolution from an NIH-backed project in Barcelona to a globally recognized entity, they highlight notable achievements including a seminal p53 immunohistochemistry paper and a successful SPORE grant application for a tissue microarray project. Dr. Goe...

NMIBC Molecular Subtypes Predict Differential Response to Intravesical BCG - Tahlita C. M. Zuiverloon

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Ashish Kamat invites Tahlita Zuiverloon to discuss her study on non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) and predicting responses to intravesical BCG treatment. Dr. Zuiverloon's study employed whole-transcriptomic sequencing to analyze pre- and post-BCG tumors from 283 patients across five European urological centers, aiming to identify molecular subtypes predictive of BCG responses. The study i...

Unlocking New Frontiers in Bladder Cancer Treatment with Chemo Ablation and Emerging Technologies - Jørgen Bjerggaard Jensen

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Ashish Kamat and Jørgen Bjerggaard Jensen discuss chemo ablation, a treatment strategy for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Dr. Jensen details the Danish Bladder Cancer Study's findings, highlighting chemo ablation's effectiveness in managing chemosensitive tumors and potentially circumventing the need for initial TURBT in over 50% of patients. They weigh the benefits and drawbacks of treatment...

Probing the Promising Future of Anti-HER2 Therapies for Micropapillary Bladder Cancer - Jeffrey Ross

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Ashish Kamat engages with Jeffrey Ross to discuss the complexities of micropapillary urothelial carcinoma (MPUC), an aggressive subtype of urothelial bladder cancer. Kamat underscores the disease's frequent late-stage presentations, and Ross details the correlation between HER2 gene alterations and MPUC's aggressive behavior and early spread. The conversation also covers the potential of anti-HER2...