ABSTRACT
Purpose: To describe the clinical characteristics,
treatment patterns, and outcomes in
patients with small
cell bladder cancer at our institution, including those
who received prophylactic
cranial irradiation (PCI) for the prevention of intracranial
recurrence . Materials and
Methods: Patients with small
cell bladder cancer treated at a single institution between January 1990 and August 2015 were identified and analyzed retrospectively for demographics,
tumor stage,
treatment , and overall
survival .
Results: Of 44
patients diagnosed with small
cell bladder cancer , 11 (25%) had metastatic
disease at the
time of presentation.
Treatment included systemic
chemotherapy (70%), radical
surgery (59%), and local
radiation (39%). Six
patients (14%) received PCI. Median overall
survival was 10 months (IQR 4 - 41).
Patients with extensive
disease had worse overall
survival than those with organ confined
disease (8 months vs. 36 months, respectively, p = 0.04). Among those
who received PCI, 33% achieved 5 - year
survival .
Conclusion: Outcomes for
patients with small
cell bladder cancer remain poor. Further
research is indicated to determine if PCI increases overall
survival in small call
bladder cancer patients , especially those with extensive
disease who respond to
chemotherapy .