Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on the Efficacy of Chemotherapy with Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumors as Definitive Therapy for Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer

BACKGROUND: Bladder-sparing treatment of muscle invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) with systemic chemotherapy plus transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT) is increasingly seen in the literature –both in case series and subanalyses of patients who opt out of or are unfit for radical cystectomy (RC). Survival outcomes among these patients are often impressive, but these are typically small retrospective studies from single institutions and therefore of limited clinical value. OBJECTIVES: Our aim is to summarize the literature regarding definitive treatment of MIBC with systemic chemotherapy plus TURBT and provide a meta-analysis of survival outcomes for patients who received this treatment. METHODS: A systematic literature search was performed consistent with the Prisma statement to identify publications reporting the outcomes of patients treated with TURBT and systemic chemotherapy as definitive treatment for locally confined MIBC. Identified studies were screened in a two-stage process: first by title and abstract; then by full-text reading. 18 publications (518 patients) were included in the qualitative systematic review and 10 publications (266 patients) were included in the meta-analysis. The primary objective was overall survival (OS). RESULTS: Overall survival ranged from 20% to 87.5% across studies at median follow-up ranging 4 to 120 months. 5-year survival rate for all patients included in the meta-analysis was estimated to be 72% [95% CI: 64%, 82%]. CONCLUSIONS: Definitive treatment with systemic chemotherapy plus TURBT can lead to favorable survival outcomes in select patients. Further study to improve patient selection for this method of treatment is needed.