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Directory of Authors from the Journal and their last article.

Samih HayekView Articles

Volume 16, Number 1Review Articles

Calyceal Diverticula: A Comprehensive Review

Disease State Review

Zeph OkekeNikhil WaingankarSamih HayekArthur D Smith

Calyceal diverticula are rare outpouchings of the upper collecting system that likely have a congenital origin. Stones can be found in up to 50% of calyceal diverticula, although, over the combined reported series, 96% of patients presented with stones. Diagnosis is best made by intravenous urography or computed tomography urogram. Shock wave lithotripsy (SWL) is an option for first-line therapy in patients with stone-bearing diverticula that have radiologically patent necks in mid- to upper-pole diverticula and small stone burdens. Stone-free rates are the lowest with SWL, although patients report being asymptomatic following therapy in up to 75% of cases with extended follow-up. Ureteroscopy (URS) is best suited for management of anteriorly located mid- to upper-pole diverticular stones. Drawbacks to URS include difficulty in identifying the ostium and low rate of obliteration. Percutaneous management is best used in posteriorly located mid- to lower-pole stones, and offers the ability to directly ablate the diverticulum. Percutaneous nephrolithotomy remains effective in the management of upper-pole diverticula, but carries the risk of pulmonary complications unless subcostal access strategies such as triangulation or renal displacement are used. Laparoscopic surgery provides definitive management, but should be reserved for cases with large stones in anteriorly located diverticula with thin overlying parenchyma, and cases that are refractory to other treatment. This article reviews the current theories on the pathogenesis of calyceal diverticula. The current classification is examined in addition to the current diagnostic methods. Here we summarize an extensive review of the literature on the outcomes of the different treatment approaches. [ Rev Urol. 2014;16(1):29-43 doi: 10.3909/riu0581] © 2014 MedReviews®, LLC

UreterorenoscopyCalyceal diverticulaPercutaneous nephrostolithotomyLaparoscopic surgeryShock wave lithotripsy

Sanoj PunnenView Articles

Volume 17, Number 1Review Articles

Finding the Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: The 4Kscore Is a Novel Blood Test That Can Accurately Identify the Risk of Aggressive Prostate Cancer

Diagnosis and Screening Update

Dipen J ParekhSanoj PunnenMASNicola Pavan

Better biomarkers that can discriminate between aggressive and indolent phenotypes of prostate cancer are urgently needed. In the first 20 years of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) era, screening for prostate cancer has successfully reduced prostate cancer mortality, but has led to significant problems with overdiagnosis and overtreatment. As a result, many men are subjected to unnecessary prostate biopsies and overtreatment of indolent cancer in order to save one man from dying of prostate cancer. A novel blood test known as the 4Kscore® Test (OPKO Lab, Nashville, TN) incorporates a panel of four kallikrein protein biomarkers (total PSA, free PSA, intact PSA, and human kallikrein-related peptidase 2) and other clinical information in an algorithm that provides a percent risk for a high-grade (Gleason score ≥ 7) cancer on biopsy. In 10 peer-reviewed publications, the four kallikrein biomarkers and algorithm of the 4Kscore Test have been shown to improve the prediction not only of biopsy histopathology, but also surgical pathology and occurrence of aggressive, metastatic disease. Recently, a blinded prospective trial of the 4Kscore Test was conducted across the United States among 1012 men. The 4Kscore Test replicated previous European results showing accuracy in predicting biopsy outcome of Gleason score ≥ 7. In a recent case-control study nested within a population-based cohort from Västerbotten, Sweden, the four kallikrein biomarkers of the 4Kscore Test also predicted the risk for aggressive prostate cancer that metastasized within 20 years after the test was administered. These results indicate that men with an abnormal PSA or digital rectal examination result, and for whom an initial or repeat prostate biopsy is being considered, would benefit from a reflex 4Kscore Test to add important information to the clinical decision-making process. A high-risk 4Kscore Test result may be used to select men with a high probability of aggressive prostate cancer who would benefit from a biopsy of the prostate to prevent an adverse and potentially lethal outcome from prostate cancer. Men with a low 4Kscore Test result may safely defer biopsy. [Rev Urol. 2015;17(1):3-13 doi: 10.3909/riu0668] © 2015 MedReviews®, LLC

Prostate cancerBiomarkerScreeningHigh-grade prostate cancer

Sara MelegariView Articles

Volume 15, Number 4Review Articles

Intracavitary Immunotherapy and Chemotherapy for Upper Urinary Tract Cancer: Current Evidence

Systematic Review

Luca CarmignaniRoberto BianchiGabriele CozziNicola MacchioneCarlo MarenghiSara MelegariMarco RossoElena TondelliAugusto MaggioniAngelica Grasso

A review of the literature was performed to summarize current evidence regarding the efficacy of topical immunotherapy and chemotherapy for upper urinary tract urothelial cell carcinoma (UUT-UCC) in terms of post-treatment recurrence rates. A Medline database literature search was performed in March 2012 using the terms upper urinary tract, urothelial cancer, bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), and mitomycin C. A total of 22 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility, and 19 studies reporting the outcomes of patients who underwent immunotherapy or chemotherapy with curative or adjuvant intent for UUT-UCC were chosen for quantitative analysis. Overall, the role of immunotherapy and chemotherapy for UUT-UCC is not firmly established. The most established practice is the treatment of carcinoma in situ (CIS) with BCG, even if a significant advantage has not yet been proven. The use of BCG as adjuvant therapy after complete resection of papillary UUT-UCC has been studied less extensively, even if recurrence rates are not significantly different than after the treatment of CIS. Only a few reports describe the use of mitomycin C, making it difficult to obtain significant evidence. [Rev Urol. 2013;15(4):145-153 doi: 10.3909/riu0579] © 2014 MedReviews®, LLC

ImmunotherapyChemotherapyBacillus Calmette-GuérinUpper urinary tractUrothelial cell carcinomaMitomycin C

Savvas E MendrinosView Articles

Volume 15, Number 4Original Research

Utilization Trends and Positive Biopsy Rates for Prostate Biopsies in the United States: 2005 to 2011

Deepak A KapoorAnn E AndersonCarl A OlssonSavvas E MendrinosDavid G Bostwick

This article assesses the positive biopsy rate and core sampling pattern in patients undergoing needle biopsy of the prostate in the United States at a national reference laboratory (NRL) and anatomic pathology laboratories integrated into urology group practices, and analyzes the relationship between positive biopsy rates and the number of specimen vials per biopsy. For the years 2005 to 2011 we collected pathology data from an NRL, including number of urologists and urology practices referring samples, total specimen vials submitted for prostate biopsies, and final pathologic diagnosis for each case. The diagnoses were categorized as benign, malignant, prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia, or atypical small acinar proliferation. Over the same period, similar data were gathered from urology practices with in-house laboratories performing global pathology services (urology practice laboratories; UPLs) as identified by a survey of members of the Large Urology Group Practice Association. For each year studied, positive biopsy rate and number of specimen vials per biopsy were calculated in aggregate and separately for each site of service. From 2005 to 2011, 437,937 biopsies were submitted in . 4.23 million vials (9.4 specimen vials/biopsy); overall positive biopsy rate was 40.3%—this was identical at both the NRL and UPL (P 5 .97). Nationally, the number of specimen vials per biopsy increased sharply from a mean of 8.8 during 2005 to 2008 to a mean of 10.3 from 2009 to 2011 (difference, 1.5 specimen vials/biopsy; P 5 .03). For the most recent 3-year period (2009-2011), the difference of 0.6 specimen vials per biopsy between the NRL (10.0) and UPL (10.6) was not significant (P 5 0.08). Positive biopsy rate correlated strongly (P , .01) with number of specimen vials per biopsy. The positive prostate biopsy rate is 40.3% and is identical across sites of service. Although there was a national trend toward increased specimen vials per biopsy from 2005 to 2011, from 2009 to 2011 there was no significant difference in specimen vials per biopsy across sites of service. Increased cancer detection rate correlated significantly with increased number of specimens examined. Segregation of prostate biopsy cores into 10 to 12 unique specimen vials has been widely adopted by urologists across sites of service. [Rev Urol. 2013;15(4):137-144 doi: 10.3909/riu0600] © 2014 MedReviews®, LLC

Prostate cancerProstate biopsyUtilization trendsNational reference laboratory

Scott B ShappellView Articles