Overview of Olaparib as a treatment option for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

Introduction: Men with prostate cancer undergoing castration will eventually progress. In addition to androgen receptor pathway inhibitors (like abiraterone and enzalutamide) or chemotherapy (like docetaxel), exists olaparib, a relatively new drug that interferes with the base excision repair (BER) pathway mainly due to selective inhibition of Poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) 1 and 2.Areas covered: Herein, the authors evaluate the basic characteristics of olaparib, including its pharmacokinetics, mechanism of action, efficacy, and safety profile. The authors also provide their expert opinion and future perspectives for the place of this drug in the current treatment armamentarium.Expert opinion: Olaparib is the first drug to prove that genetic sequencing and precise medicine is a viable and important option for prostate cancer patients. In patients with deletions in preselected genes, its efficacy renders it as a viable option for second- or third-line management of metastatic castrate resistance prostate cancer (mCRPC). This fact, along with its acceptable toxicity profile, provide physicians with a new weapon in their armamentarium against this extremely difficult to treat disease.

The Impact of COVID-19 Disease on Urology Practice.

The diagnosis and timely treatment of cancer patients should not be compromised during an infectious disease pandemic. The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has serious implications on urology practice and raises particular questions for urologists about the management of different conditions. It was recommended to cancel most of the elective urological surgeries. Urological cancers surgeries that should be prioritized are radical cystectomy for selective tumors, orchiectomy for suspected testicular tumors, nephrectomy for c T3 + , nephroureterectomy for high-grade disease, and radical adrenalectomy for tumors >6 cm or adrenal carcinoma. Most prostatectomies can be delayed without compromising the survival rate of patients. Urological emergencies should be treated adequately even during this pandemic. There is a potential risk of coronavirus diffusion during minimally invasive procedures performed. It is crucial to use specific precautions when urologists performed those type of surgeries. It was also recommended to suspend the kidney transplantation program during the COVID-19 pandemic except for specific cases. In this review, we discussed the triage of urological surgeries, the risk of minimally invasive urological procedure, the kidney transplantation challenges, the systemic therapies, intravesical instillation of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), endourology, teleconferencing, and telemedicine application in urology during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A pharmacoeconomic evaluation of pharmaceutical treatment options for prostate cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Prostate cancer is one of the most common neoplasms in men. For many years the mainstay of treatment was androgen deprivation therapy, but during last decade many novel agents have emerged, accompanied by increased costs for healthcare systems. AREAS COVERED: In this literature review, the authors provide a pharmacoeconomic review of several pharmaceutical agents used in several disease stages, by summarizing evidence from cost-analysis, cost-effectiveness, cost-utility, cost-saving, cost-benefit and budgetary impact analysis studies. EXPERT OPINION: The rapid development of therapeutic agents for prostate cancer has put a great budgetary burden on healthcare systems, since these drugs are prolonging survival and improving quality of life . Since existing data are now mature enough from a number of clinical trials with long-term follow-up, policy makers should propose not only the most clinically effective but also the most cost-effective agents, in order for every patient to gain access at least to some of these therapies. Docetaxel addition seems to be a cost-effective option, when compared to both abiraterone and enzalutamide (due to costs related to acquisition and side effects). Cabazitaxel is a strong candidate after docetaxel failure, while both denosumab and bisphosphonates are cost-effective for reducing skeletal-related events in metastatic disease.

Current and emerging gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) antagonists for the treatment of prostate cancer.

Introduction:Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is currently the backbone treatment of metastatic prostate cancer and is also used in combination with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT). Castration may be achieved either by bilateral orchiectomy or by administration of LHRH agonists or GnRH antagonists.Areas covered: In this article, the authors assess the current and emerging role of GnRH antagonists for the treatment of prostate cancer focusing on oncological results and safety (i.e. cardiovascular risk). In addition, updated data regarding the first orally administered GnRH antagonist, relugolix, is presented.Expert opinion: Studies demonstrate that GnRH antagonists are at least equal with LHRH agonists in terms of testosterone suppression and PSA progression free survival with a major advantage being rapid testosterone suppression. Thus, the optimal group of patients included symptomatic metastatic prostate cancer patients especially if cardiovascular comorbidities or LUTS are also present. Emerging data regarding benefit of the use of GnRH antagonists in patients with concomitant cardiovascular disease are of great interest. Relugolix has emerged as the first orally administered GnRH antagonist able to achieve and maintain testosterone castration levels and it is associated with a profound reduction of major cardiovascular events.

Bladder irrigation with povidone-iodine prevent recurrent urinary tract infections in neurogenic bladder patients on clean intermittent catheterization.

AIMS: To determine if daily povidone-iodine (PI) bladder irrigation in neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction (NLUTD) patients doing clean intermittent catheterization (CIC) can reduce the rate of symptomatic urinary tract infections (UTIs), emergency department (ED) visit for UTIs, and hospitalization for UTIs. METHODS: We prospectively reviewed the records of patients with NLUTD on CIC who had recurrent symptomatic UTIs and who were placed on daily intravesical instillations of PI. This trial was conducted from January 2014 to January 2020 on 119 patients. RESULTS: After using daily PI bladder irrigation, the rate of symptomatic UTIs was reduced by 99.2% (incidence rate ratio [IRR]: 0.008, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.001-0.059; p < .001), the rate of ED visits was reduced by 99.2%% (IRR: 0.008, 95% CI: 0.001-0.059; p < .001), and the rate of inpatient hospitalizations for UTI was reduced by 99.9% (IRR: 0.0008, 95% CI: 0.0002-0.0035; p < .001). There was also a significant decrease in multidrug resistance in UTI organisms with the use of PI bladder instillation. CONCLUSIONS: Daily intravesical PI instillation is a well-tolerated approach to prevent UTIs and related ED visits and hospitalizations in NLUTD patients doing CIC.

Intradermal sterile water injection versus diclofenac sodium in acute renal colic pain: A randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of intracutaneous sterile water injection (ISWI) to relieve the pain of acute renal colic compared with diclofenac and placebo. METHODS: The study included 150 patients presented to the Emergency Department with renal colic randomized into 3 groups: control group received intracutaneous injections of 0.5 cm3 isotonic saline in the flank, group A received intracutaneous injections of 0.5 cm3 ISWI in the flank, and group B received an intramuscular injection of 75 mg Diclofenac in the gluteal region. The severity of the pain was assessed by a visual analogue scale system at baseline and 30, 45 min, and 60 min after injections. Subjects with inadequate pain relief at 1 h received rescue analgesia. RESULTS: The mean baseline pain score was 9.6 ± 0.61 in the ISWI group, 9.72 ± 0.64 in the diclofenac group and 9.26 ± 0.89 in the control group. The mean pain score at 30 min of the control group was reduced to 6.9 ± 1.56. This mean at 30 min after ISWI and diclofenac injections were reduced to 1.98 ± 1.41 and 1.88 ± 1.19 respectively. The mean of pain sore of the ISWI and diclofenac group at 45 and 60 min was constant. Rescue analgesics at 1 h were required by 47 patients receiving the saline injection and by 4 patients and by 7 patients receiving ISWI and diclofenac injection respectively. CONCLUSIONS: ISWI and diclofenac were equally effective for the pain relief of acute renal colic.

Inguinal lymph node metastasis of bladder carcinoma after radical cystectomy: A case report and review of literature.

INTRODUCTION: Lymph node metastasis in bladder cancer (BC) is common and has been associated with a very poor prognosis. Bc rarely metastasizes to inguinal lymph nodes. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We reported an unusual case of right inguinal lymph node metastasis of transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder. Metastasis occurred 9 months after radical cystectomy for BC. The patient refused chemotherapy and underwent only surgical excision of lymph nodes without any adjuvant therapy. During a follow-up period of 3 years, the patient still having complete remission. DISCUSSION: Multiple studies showed an improved clinical outcome with adjuvant chemotherapy for pathological node-positive patients with BC. Long-term survival could be achieved for some patients with limited lymph node metastasis who underwent metastasectomy. Some studies supported the benefit of surgical consolidation after a good response to systemic chemotherapy. The best management plan for clinically node-positive BC is not established yet. CONCLUSION: There is little evidence on which to base the management of inguinal lymph node metastasis from BC. Metastasectomy could be an option with good outcomes.

Seizure as the first manifestation of transitional cell carcinoma of the renal pelvis.

Upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) is a rare genitourinary entity of the renal pelvis and the ureter characterized by an aggressive behavior. Cisplatin-based chemotherapy is the first-line therapy of metastatic UTUC. However, a large number of patients with metastatic UTUC are considered ineligible for cisplatin. Immunotherapy emerged as a promising treatment in this setting. Brain metastasis from UTUC is unusual, occurring most often in the presence of systemic metastases. Local therapies such as stereotactic radiosurgery, neurosurgical resection and whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT) remain the main therapeutic options for brain metastasis. We report a case of a 65-year-old male patient presenting with generalized tonic-clonic seizure. Imaging studies confirmed the presence of multiple brain metastasis. During an evaluation for the primary, he was found to be having metastatic UTUC of the renal pelvis. The brain metastases were treated by hippocampal sparing WBRT with minimal neurotoxicity. The primary tumor was treated by pembrolizumab.

Lower urinary tract dysfunction in common neurological diseases.

The lower urinary tract has the main function of urine storage and voiding. The integrity of the lower urinary tract nerve supply is necessary for its proper function. Neurological disorders can lead to lower urinary tract dysfunction (LUTD) and cause lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Common causes of neurogenic LUTS or LUTD include spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, cerebrovascular accidents, cauda equina syndrome, diabetes mellitus, and multiple system atrophy. The pathophysiology is categorized according to the nature of the onset of neurological disease. Assessment requires clinical evaluation, laboratory tests, imaging, and urodynamic studies. Impaired voiding is most often managed by clean intermittent self-catheterization if the postvoid residual urine exceeds 100 ml, whereas storage symptoms are most often managed by antimuscarinic medications. Intradetrusor injection of botulinum toxin type A is emerging as an effective treatment for managing refractory neurogenic detrusor overactivity. This review provides an overview of the clinical characteristics, diagnosis, and management of LUTD in patients with central and peripheral common neurological diseases.

Enterococcal prosthetic valve endocarditis secondary to transurethral prostatic resection.

Prosthetic valve endocarditis (PVE) is a catastrophic complication of cardiac valve replacement, associated with high mortality rates. Staphylococci (both Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative Staphylococcui) are the most common cause of PVE. Diagnosis may often be difficult because of its complications and extracardiac manifestations. Positive blood and valve cultures are one of the most important diagnostic criteria for IE. Transesophageal echography should be performed without delay in all patients suspected to have PVE. As for treatment, according to the guidelines sensitive antimicrobials should be administered for 6 weeks. Surgery is recommended in case of PVE complicated by heart failure, severe prosthetic dysfunction, abscess or persistent fever. We present a case of PVE after transurethral resection of the prostate in a 63-year-old male patient with a history of mitral valve replacement. The patient was treated by appropriate antimicrobials for 6 weeks and recovered completely.

Metastatic prostate cancer presenting as a retroperitoneal mass: a case report and review of literature.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most common cancer diagnosed in men globally, after lung cancer. Many patients with PCa are asymptomatic until the tumor has progressed. The prognosis of PCa mainly depends on the presence of metastatic spread. It usually metastasizes to the bone, lung, and liver. Retroperitoneum is an exceedingly rare site for metastatic PCa to occur. We describe a case of a 68-year-old male patient presented for left flank pain and lower limb edema. A retroperitoneal mass was identified on imagery. This mass was found to be due to metastatic prostate adenocarcinoma based on immunohistochemical studies. Knowledge of this atypical presentation of metastatic PCa will reduce the diagnostic delay and allow the appropriate timely treatment.