Clinical and Histopathological Characteristics of Prostate Cancer Patients Taken to Palliative Transurethral Prostate Resection

Introduction In prostate cancer (PCa) patients who have been treated with radiotherapy and/or androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), palliative transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) is a management option in the presence of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). The present work seeks to describe the clinical and histopathological characteristics of patients with PCa taken to palliative TURP. Methods An observational, descriptive and retrospective study of patients with PCa who underwent palliative TURP for the relief of obstructive urinary symptoms at an oncology reference center between January 2006 and June 2014 was performed. Among the included patients were those with localized PCa treated with radiotherapy and those with advanced PCa with or without metastasis who had previously received ADT. Results Sixty-six patients with a diagnosis of PCa taken to palliative RTUP were identified. Fifty patients (78.4%) were received some type of ADT, seven patients (10.7%) received curative radiotherapy along with adjuvant ADT, five patients (7.8%) were previously treated with only radiotherapy, and two patients (3.1 %) had received no prior management and thus were taken to bilateral orchiectomy along with palliative TURP in a single surgical act. With regard to the pathology reports, tumor tissue was found in 50 patients (76%), and no tumor was observed in the remaining 16 patients (24%). In one case (1.5%), the Gleason score (GS) could not be determined due to the effects of orchiectomy. Under-staging in the grade group was evidenced in 23 patients (46.9%), over-staging in three patients (6.3%), and no difference in 23 patients (46.9%), when compared to the initial GS at biopsy. The mortality rate and the incidence of TURP syndrome were low (3.1% and 1.5%, respectively). A 46% reduction in the mean serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) value was documented when the preoperative and postoperative values were compared. Conclusion A decrease in the serum PSA levels was observed after palliative TURP, and despite having received ADT, it was possible to determine tumor pathology in the resected tissue, being able to identify a greater grade group compared the GS at the time of diagnosis. The palliative TURP proved to be a safe procedure to relieve LUTS in patients with advanced PCa, with a low morbidity and mortality rate.