The aim of the study was to investigate the feasibility of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) measurement in bladder washings of patients affected by non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) and its prognostic role in identifying risk subgroups and predicting disease recurrence and progression.

Patients with NMIBC treated with transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT) from 2012 to 2015 were enrolled. Samples of bladder washings were collected and stored at -80°C until RNA extraction. The cDNA obtained from RNA was used to perform a gene expression analysis by a real time polymerase chain reaction.

An adequate cellular pellet was obtained in 50 (86.2%) of 58 patients and in 18 (85.7%) of 21 controls. Patients had a median 2.5-, a 1.6- and a 2.8-fold EGFR expression compared with controls before, during, and after adjuvant treatment, respectively. Patients at higher risk had a significantly higher EGFR expression compared with patients at low and intermediate risk when EGFR was measured during (P = .04) and after (P = .001) adjuvant therapy. At a median follow-up of 35.5 months (interquartile range, 19.0-54.8 months), in the high-risk group, patients with overexpression had a significantly lower recurrence-free survival (27.9% vs. 58%), progression-free survival (75.9% vs. 90.2%), and cancer-specific survival (77.7% vs. 93.3%). At multivariable analysis, EGFR overexpression was an additional independent prognostic factor to the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer scoring system of disease recurrence (hazard ratio, 1.98; 95% confidence interval, 1.32-2.97) and progression (hazard ratio, 1.84; 95% confidence interval, 1.27-2.65).

EGFR overexpression might represent an additional parameter to the current clinical tools for an individualized risk stratification.

Clinical genitourinary cancer. 2019 Apr 26 [Epub ahead of print]

Fabrizio Di Maida, Andrea Mari, Cristina Scalici Gesolfo, Antonina Cangemi, Rosalinda Allegro, Simone Sforza, Andrea Cocci, Riccardo Tellini, Lorenzo Masieri, Antonio Russo, Marco Carini, Andrea Minervini, Vincenzo Serretta

Department of Urology, University of Florence, Unit of Oncologic Minimally-Invasive Urology and Andrology, Careggi Hospital, Florence, Italy., Section of Urology, Department of Surgical, Oncological and Stomatological Sciences, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy., Section of Medical Oncology, Department of Surgical, Oncological, and Stomatological Sciences, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy., Department of Statistics, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy., Section of Urology, Department of Surgical, Oncological and Stomatological Sciences, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy. Electronic address: .

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