Dr. Desai on the Ideal Patient for Bladder Preservation in Urothelial Cancer

Neil Desai, MD, associate professor, radiation oncology, UT Southwestern Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses the ideal patient for bladder preservation in urothelial cancer.

There have been a substantial amount of research examining selection criteria for the ideal patient for bladder preservation, Desai says. These criteria include a smaller tumor size, the ability for surgeons to completely resect a tumor, the ability for patients to receive standard chemotherapy with concurrent radiation, and a lack of hydronephrosis, Desai explains.

When patients don’t meet some aspects of the selection criteria, it means they have a higher burden of disease, and bladder preservation may not provide as durable of control in patients with higher disease burden, Desai continues. It is important to differentiate selection criteria from eligibility, as patients not meeting the selection criteria could still be eligible for bladder preservation; rather, these patients have a higher risk of disease progression following preservation, Desai concludes.