CALENDAR

International Continence Society

Annual Meeting

September 27-29

Toronto, Canada

ASTRO 2023 Annual Meeting

October 1-4

San Diego, CA

American Society of Nephrology

Kidney Week 2023

November 1-5

Philadelphia, PA

LUGPA Annual Meeting

November 2-4

Lake Buena Vista, FL

IKCS: North America

November 9-11

Nashville, TN

Society of Urologic Oncology

Annual Meeting

November 29-December 1

Washington, DC

Editor’s note: The 2023 conference listings below include information provided by the sponsoring organizations on their websites as this issue went to press. Departments

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Short Takes

Wireless Device to Monitor Bladder Pressure Tested

A wireless technology called UroMonitor, the first device to enable catheterfree telemetric ambulatory bladder pressure monitoring in human beings, appears safe and well-tolerated based on a trial involving 11 women.

After baseline urodynamics, the UroMonitor was inserted into the bladder transurethrally. The device did not significantly alter capacity, sensation, or flow during urodynamics, a team led by Margot S. Damaser, MD, of the Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute at Cleveland Clinic, reported in The Journal of Urology It reproduced bladder pressure, capturing 98% voiding and nonvoiding urodynamic events.

Benzbromarone Reduces

CKD Risk vs Allopurinol

Benzbromarone significantly reduced the risk for chronic kidney disease

(CKD) by 41% compared with allopurinol in a study of adult patients with asymptomatic hyperuricemia, Chiu-Shong Liu, MD, China Medical University in Taichung, Taiwan, and colleagues reported in the European Journal of Internal Medicine

Using the 2003-2015 National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan, the researchers propensityscore-matched 9107 benzbromarone users to 4554 allopurinol users. All patients had asymptomatic hyperuricemia and were free of gouty disorders and CKD at baseline.

Second Primary Cancer Risk

Lower With IMRT vs 3DCRT

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for prostate cancer does not increase the risk for second primary cancers compared with 3D conformal radiation therapy (3DCRT), according findings published in JAMA Oncology

Using a linked database of Medicare claims and Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) program registries, a team led by Sara J. Schonfeld, PhD, of the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, studied 65,235 2-year first primary prostate cancer survivors and 45,811 5-year survivors with similar demographic characteristics. Compared with 3DCRT, IMRT was significantly associated with a 9% decreased risk for solid cancers and did not differ significantly with respect to hematologic cancers.

Kidney Transplants on the Rise

Adding CN to Immunotherapy for mRCC Improves Survival

Cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN) performed before or after immunotherapy for metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (mccRCC) improves survival compared with immunotherapy alone, according to data presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s 2023 Annual Meeting in Chicago.

In a study of 7367 patients identified using the National Cancer Database, immunotherapy followed by CN and CN followed by immunotherapy were significantly associated with 63% and 47% decreased risks for mortality, respectively, compared with monotherapy alone, Maroun Bou Zerdan, MD, of SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York, and colleagues reported in a poster presentation.

The 5-year overall survival rate was 13.0% for recipients of immunotherapy alone compared with 43.2% for patients who received immunotherapy followed by CN and 34.0% for those treated with CN followed by immunotherapy.

VTE Risk Factors in Kidney Transplant Recipients Identified

Certain kidney transplant recipients, such as those with anemia, have increased risks of venous thromboembolism (VTE), investigators reported at the 2023 American Transplant Congress in San Diego.

Investigators matched 65 recipients at their institution who experienced VTE with 65 recipients who did not by age and year of transplantation. Median patient age at transplantation was 54 years. The median time until VTE was 58 days after surgery, Basma O. Merhi, MD, of Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, and colleagues reported. VTE was most commonly found in the lower right extremity (29.2%) and in the graft (15.4%).

The likelihood of VTE was a significant 5.0-, 4.4-, 2.8-, and 2.6-fold higher among patients who underwent a second transplant, previously received hemodialysis, had hypertension, and smoked, respectively, in unadjusted analyses. Each 1 g/dL increase in hemoglobin level was significantly associated with 28% decreased odds of VTE.

ED Visits for Gout Rose After 2010 Colchicine Price Hike

Alarge colchicine price increase in 2010 led to a rapid decrease in its use that lasted for approximately a decade, according to a recent report.

From 2011 to 2019, emergency department and adult rheumatology visits for gout significantly increased by 40% and 11%, respectively.

The FDA discontinued lower-priced versions of colchicine in 2010 after it granted market exclusivity to Colcrys for 3 years. The mean price per prescription of colchicine increased from $11.25 in 2009 to $190.49 in 2011, Zirui Song, MD, PhD, of Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues reported in JAMA Internal Medicine Average out-of-pocket costs increased from $7.37 to $39.49. These costs remained high through 2019.

From 2007-2010 to 2011-2019, mean colchicine use declined significantly by 9.6 pills per patients in adjusted analyses, while allopurinol use rose significantly by 33.1 pills per patient and oral corticosteroid use by 1.5 pills per patient.