Follow-up of urothelial carcinoma: Review of the Cancer Committee of the French Association of Urology

Introduction. - Cancer Committee of the French Association of Urology (CCAFU) conducted a literature review concerning the follow-up of urothelial carcinomas and provides recommendations for monitoring. Material and methods. - A bibliographic research in French and English using PubMed was carried out from 1990 to 2014 using the keywords "urothelial carcinoma", "follow-up", "prognosis", and "recurrence". Results. - Rhythm and tools of follow-up (cytology, endoscopy, CT-urography) for non muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) have to be adjusted to the recurrence and progression risk defined by the EORTC tables. After radical treatment of muscle invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), follow-up is based on endoscopy, cytology and CT-urography. Monitoring of the urethra must be adapted to the recurrence factors and continued for at least 5 years. The monitoring of upper tract should be continued for life. In case of conservative treatment for MIBC, early endoscopy and imaging reassessment is required. After radical treatment of upper urinary tract tumour (UTUC), cystoscopy and cytology are essential because of the frequency of bladder recurrence in the first three years. Conservative management of UTUC requires strict monitoring including flexible ureteroscopy. Conclusion. - Oncologic follow-up of urothelial carcinomas is adapted according to tumour stage and grade, location and treatment modality thus defining the risk of recurrence over time. (C) 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.