Upper tract urothelial carcinoma in Germany: epidemiological data and surgical treatment trends in a total population analysis from 2006 to 2019

PURPOSE: To report contemporary epidemiological data and treatment trends for upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) in Germany over a 14-year period. METHODS: We analyzed data from the nationwide German hospital billing database and the German cancer registry from 2006 to 2018/2019. The significance of changes over time was evaluated via regression analysis. Survival outcomes were calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method. RESULTS: There was a non-significant increase in the age-standardized incidence rate from 2.5/100,000 in 2006 to 2.9/100.000 in 2018. 13% of patients presented with lymph node metastasis and 7.6% of patients presented with distant metastasis at primary diagnosis. The 5-year overall survival was estimated at 45% and the 10-year overall survival at 32%. Endoscopic biopsies of the renal pelvis and ureter as well as ureteroscopies with excision/destruction of UTUC all increased significantly over the study period. The number of radical nephroureterectomies (RNU) for UTUC steadily increased from 1643 cases in 2006 to 2238 cases in 2019 (p < 0.005) with a shift from open surgery towards minimally invasive surgery. Complex reconstructive procedures like ileal ureter replacement or autotransplantation are rarely performed for urothelial carcinoma of the ureter. CONCLUSION: Diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for UTUC have increased and minimally invasive nephroureterectomy is the predominant approach concerning radical surgery in 2019. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00345-022-04219-5.