Vol. 45 (4): 686-694, July – August, 2019

doi: 10.1590/S1677-5538.IBJU.2018.0530


ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Yun-Sok Ha 1, Sang Won Kim 1, Tae Gyun Kwon 1, Sung Kwang Chung 1, Eun Sang Yoo 1
1 Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea

ABSTRACT

Purpose: The present study aimed to determine whether sarcopenia after radical cystectomy (RC) could predict overall survival (OS) in patients with urothelial bladder cancer (UBC).
Materials and Methods: The lumbar skeletal muscle index (SMI) of 80 patients was measured before and 1 year after RC. The prognostic signifi cance of sarcopenia and SMI decrease after RC were evaluated using Kaplan–Meier analysis and a multivariable Cox regression model.
Results: Of 80 patients, 26 (32.5%) experienced sarcopenia before RC, whereas 40 (50.0%) experienced sarcopenia after RC. The median SMI change was -2.2 cm2/m2.
Patients with sarcopenia after RC had a higher pathological T stage and tumor grade than patients without sarcopenia. Furthermore, the overall mortality rate was signifi – cantly higher in patients with sarcopenia than in those without sarcopenia 1 year after RC. The median follow-up time was 46.2 months, during which 22 patients died. Kaplan-Meier estimates showed a signifi cant difference in OS rates based on sarcopenia (P=0.012) and SMI decrease (P=0.025). Multivariable Cox regression analysis showed that SMI decrease (≥2.2 cm2/m2) was an independent predictor of OS (hazard ratio: 2.68, confi dence interval: 1.007-7.719, P = 0.048).
Conclusions: The decrease in SMI after surgery might be a negative prognostic factor for OS in patients who underwent RC to treat UBC.

Keywords: Urinary Bladder Neoplasms; Sarcopenia; Survival

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