Metachronous bladder tumors in patients with upper urinary tract transitional cell carcinoma

Sixty-nine patients who underwent nephroureterectomy for upper urinary tract transitional cell carcinoma were included in the study. The following data were collected for each patient: grade and stage of renal/ureteral tumor, tumor location, timing of tumor appearance and recurrence in the bladder, grade and stage of each of the recurrent tumors, and number of recurrences. Follow-up ranged between 2 and 15 years. Thirty-three patients (47.8%) developed metachronous bladder tumors. The appearance of the bladder tumors was related to tumor grade and multifocality of the upper urinary tract TCC. Of the 33 patients, 19 had 1 tumor appearance in the bladder, 6 had 2 recurrences, and 8 had 3 recurrences. The 5-year survival rate for patients with no subsequent bladder tumors was 57% compared to 22% for those who had subsequent tumors. It is concluded that the appearance of bladder tumors following nephroureterectomy characterizes a group of patients with biologically more active disease with unfavorable prognosis.