Clinical characteristics and outcome in renal transplant recipients with bladder cancer

Kim, Jin Young; Song, Myong Jun; Chung, Byung Ha; Kim, Min Soo; You, Hyei Young; Kim, Young Soo; Yang, Chul Woo; Kim, Yong Soo; Moon, In Sung; Koh, Yong Bok; Bang, Byung Kee

Abstract

BACKGROUND: With the rise in the number of renal transplantation procedures in the past years, the incidence of bladder cancer in transplant recipients has increased. This study undertaken to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcome in renal transplant recipients with bladder cancer.
METHODS
Since 1969, 1343 renal transplantations has been performed at catholic university medical college of korea. Of these patients, Nine developed bladder cancer with histologically confirmed by cystoscopic biopsy. We reviewed the medical records of nine renal transplant recipients who had bladder cancer retrospectively.
RESULTS
Nine of 1343 renal transplant recipients developed bladder cancer. All patients were diagnosed histologically as bladder cancer. The median patient age at diagnosis of bladder cancer was 48 years, and the median interval between renal transplantation and diagnosis of malignancy was 8 years. The male/female ratio was 4/5. one patient received cadaver kidney and eight recieved living donor kidney. Seven patients had urothelial carcinoma and two had Kaposi sarcoma. Seven patients had a graft dysfunction and advanced stage of bladder cancer at the time of diagnosis of malignancy. All patients has microscopic or gross hematuria. They underwent operation only or operation and chemotherapy or operation and postoperative radiotherapy. Three patients died of progressive disease at a l year after diagnosis of malignancy, 1 patients were lost to follow-up, and 5 were still alive.
CONCLUSION
Bladder cancer is not rare, and its occurrence is relatively young in renal transplant recipients. We recommend early workup of hematuria in the renal transplant recipient using the radiographic and cystoscopic evaluation.