Management of muscle-invasive bladder cancer in Victoria, 1990-1995.

BACKGROUND

The management and outcomes of muscle-invasive bladder cancer are described in this article.

METHODS

A retrospective survey of medical practitioners involved in the management of bladder cancer was conducted. The survey obtained at least 5 years of follow-up data on all patients. The sample was taken from the public and private health sectors in Victoria. All were cases of muscle-invasive bladder cancer diagnosed between 1990 and 1995. The main outcome measures included reported management by staging, treatment and survival.

RESULTS

Completed questionnaires were returned for 743 (89.6%) of 829 cases. Of these, 523 (70.4%) were men, and the mean age was 72.7 years. More than 75% of the cases (560) presented with macroscopic haematuria. The majority (696, 94%) had transitional cell carcinoma. A variety of treatments were given in various sequences, with 231 cases (31.1%) having initial surveillance. Eventually, 303 cases (40.8%) proceeded to 'definitive' management with either radiotherapy (132, 17.8%) or cystectomy (171, 23.0%). In addition, chemotherapy was given to 254 patients (34.2%) at some time. Most patients (613, 82.5%) have subsequently died; 402 (54%) died from bladder cancer. Crude 5-year survival was 13.0%, and disease-specific survival was 27.7%. Multivariate analysis identified the following predictors of greater disease-specific survival: grade 1 or 2 histopathology (P = 0.0003), T2 primary (P < 0.0001), N0 disease (P = 0.04), M0 disease (P < 0.0001), radiation dose in BED(10) >70 Gy and cystectomy (P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSION

Muscle-invasive bladder cancer in Victoria typically occurs in elderly patients, and a notable proportion of these patients do not proceed onto 'definitive' treatment. Disease stage, cystectomy and the use of high doses of radiation are associated with better outcomes. Chemotherapy was given to approximately one-third of patients at some point in their disease management. Our data are similar to population-based data from North America, and provide a baseline against which potential changes in management of bladder cancer can be compared.